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M^y^"<^^
HARVARD
COLLEGE
LIBRARY
1
JOHN RANDOLPH
Fmsi ori^iul sivcn by Huhudd* BlMcInr to tba Stat* ol Virginia, in Stet* libnrr*
TOHN RANDOLPH
■^-'
OF ROANOKK
1773-1^33
A BIOGRAPHY BASED LARGLI.V ON N«\\V M »! L-ilAL
BY
WILLIAM CABELL BRUCK
AUTHOR OF
JAUIM PRANKLLN bEJ.F-REVFALEP " a.NO '' BKLO^v tiU JaME?'*
IN TWO VOLUMES
\ 01 1 'Mi: \]
G.P. Putnam^s Sons
]\owYork d> Lon^'lon.
iy22
JOHN RANDOLPF^
OF ROANOKE
•773-1833
A BIOGRAPHY BASED LARGELY ON NEW MATERIAL
BY
WILLIAM CABELL BRUCE
AUTHOR OP -"""^
BINJAMIN PRANKLLM 8BLP-RBVBALED ** AND «" BBLOW THE JAMBS
IN TWO VOLUMES
VOLUME II
G.P. Putnam^s Sons
T^wYork © London
tDI)e/SLnickerbocker ^re^si
1922
HARVARD COM '-.L '..t'KnM
promt; IE i.'.:.'.r.YOF
BAMALIELBnAI^FJROVI
MAY 24. 1942
Copyright, 1999
by
Wnikm Cabell Bmoe
BiadB in the United StotM of Amerioft
CONTENTS
I. — * ' Like Sweet Bells Jangled * '
II. — The End
III. — The Randolph Will Litigation
IV. — Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator
V. — Randolph's District
VI. — Randolph on the Hustings
VII. — General Observations on Randolph as an
Orator .
VIII. — Randolph as a Statesman
IX. — Randolph as a Man
X. — Conclusion
Appendix
Notes for Volume I
Notes for Volume II .
Index
, »AGB
I
30
49
6i
98
174
199
2l8
252
708
713
731
758
787
ui
ILLUSTRATIONS
PACING
PAGB
John Randolph .... Frontispiece
Prom original given by Hannanus Bleecker to the State
of Virginia, in Va. State Library
Roanoke, the Seat of John Randolph . 360
Taken from Howe's Historical Collections of Vii^ginia
John Randolph Bryan, John Randolph's Godson 466
From the original painted for John Randolph, and now
owned by John Stewart Bryan of Richmond, Va.
Frances Bland Tucker 504
Half sister of John Randolph, and wife of Judge Jno. Coalter
Judge Henry St. George Tucker . . . 512
From the portrait owned by the Hon. Henry St. George
Tucker, Lexington, Va.
Judge N. Beverley Tucker 520
From a portrait owned by George P. Colen^ian, Esq., of
Williamsburg, Va.
Maria Ward 568
From the portrait owned by William Everard Meade, Dan-
ville, Va.
John Randolph of Roanoke 672
By William Henry Brown
CHAPTER I
««Like Sweet Bells Jangled**
When Randolph reached Richmond on his return from
Russia to Roanoke, he was so ill that he had to take to his
bed ; and to bed or room he was confined until a day or so
before the first Monday in November, when he found
himself strong enough to proceed to Charlotte Court
House and to address the people there on that day. On
the second Monday of November, he addressed the people
of Buckingham County, and on the third Monday of
November the people of Prince Edward County ; and he
was prevented by rain only from addressing the people of
Cumberland County on the f oiu-th Monday of November. '
In all these speeches, doubtless, he still had sufficient
command of his mental faculties to display some of his old
brilliancy and force. This was certainly true of his
speeches at Charlotte Coiu-t House and Prince Edward
Court House, and his audience at Prince Edward Court
House, at any rate, was willing to listen to him hoiu" after
hour. But to every really observant person, to whom he
had been a familiar figiu^e in the past, it was obvious that
he was demented; and this impression was created even
more by what he said and did when off the hustings than
when on.
When he had retired from Congress in 1829, he had
prevailed on Thomas T. Bouldin, of Charlotte Coimty,
then a Circuit Court Judge, to resign his seat on the bench
» Nov. 27, 1831, Jackson Papers, v. 79, Libr. Cong.
VOL. II — I I
2 John Randolph of Roanoke
and to become his successor. Judge Bouldin always said
that he yielded reluctantly to Randolph's persuasion, and
only subject to the condition suggested by him that,
whenever Randolph should desire to resume his old seat,
he should be at liberty to do so. Judge Bouldin was
elected, and, at the close of his first term, offered himself
again as a candidate at the Congressional election in April,
1831. In the meantime, Randolph, too, while in Russia, had
formally announced himself through Judge Leigh as a
candidate at this election, but without notifying Judge
Bouldin or his friends of his intention to do so. Subse-
quently, finding that he could not get back to the United
States in time for the election, he withdrew his name as a
candidate. Before he did this, however. Dr. Geo. W.
Crump, who had made way for the return of Randolph to
Congress in 1827, had offered himself as a candidate in
opposition to Judge Bouldin with a view, it was said, of
keeping the bed warm until it suited Randolph's con-
venience to get into it. Judge Bouldin was elected, but
not until much bitterness of feeling had been stirred up
among his friends by Randolph's conduct, which did not
fail to excite a spirit of responsive bitterness in Randolph ;
and the action of Dr. Crump Randolph considered a piece
of officious impertinence, as it had been taken by Dr.
Cnmip without his consent or knowledge. But how he
gave vent to his animosity towards each of the two offend-
ers, we will let the Rev. John S. Kirkpatrick, a Presby-
terian clergyman, tell in his own way.
** About a month after his arrival from Europe, he made
the speech at Prince Edward Court House which I heard. Its
avowed purpose, so far as any was avowed, was to set himself
right before the people with reference to Judge Bouldin, but,
in the six hours I stood drinking in. with quenchless avidity,
every word from his lips, I heard nothing that availed, or that
I could suppose was expected to avail, for this end. True, he
had much to say of Judge Bouldin, and, for the most part, it
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 3
was highly complimentary, and was never ostensibly unkind;
yet, in the most favorable light, in which his character and life
were presented, there was always something, in the allusion or
tone, that set him before us as one to be pitied, and borne with,
rather than one to be approved and admired. Judge Bouldin,
in a conference with Mr. Randolph the week before,
incautiously said that, for his own part, he had been willing
to pass by the slight he had received; but that his sons and
sons-in-law had demanded that he should resent it, so far as to
persist in his candidacy for Congress, notwithstanding Mr.
Randolph had taken the field against him. Over and over
again in his speech, did Mr. Randolph refer to this admission,
sa\'ing that Judge Bouldin was a *wax nose,' to be twisted,
and shaped, and turned, in one direction or another, by his
*sons and sons-in-law,* at their pleasure. *What are they,' he
would say, 'that he should surrender his judgment to theirs?
He had more sense than all of them put together. ' I wondered
why he so often came over the words, *sons and sons-in-law,*
and always with a most significant, sneer-like emphasis. I
afterwards learned that one of the 'sons-in-law ' was not regarded
as a credit to the highly respectable, and much beloved, family
of the Judge.
**Just before the speaking closed. Judge Bouldin gave an
explanation of what he intended by the remark so often cited
by Mr. Randolph, but I did not gather its import, for, during
all the time he was speaking, Mr. Randolph, sitting behind him,
kept us amused and laughing with interjectional comments on
what the Judge was saying, which, piercing our ears with
[their] fife-like shrillness, allowed nothing else to be attended
to. Thus, the Judge's opening remark was: 'What Mr. Ran-
dolph has stated respecting our conference at Buckingham
C. H. last week is strictly true.' 'Yes, it is true,' piped out
Randolph. 'I never told but one lie in my life, and then my
mother liked to have killed me for it.' And so throughout the
judge's speech of ten or fifteen minutes. I have said that, in
the reference to Judge Bouldin, there was a mingling of praise
and disparagement, yet all so manoeuvered that no offence could
be taken, or, at least, confessed to have been taken. Speaking
of the Judge's amiable character, Mr. Randolph declared that
4 John Randolph of Roanoke
he loved him dearly. *Yes,' he emphasized, 'with all his faults
I love him — and you all know and regret that he has some; as
I trust he loves me with all mine, which, although of another
kind, are greater than his.* Closing what appeared to be a
sincere and fervent eulogy of the Judge, in which he spoke of
his talents, integrity, and pubHc services, he reverted to his
kindness of heart and gentle manners, and ended in these
words: *I do not believe that a more amiable man breathes
on the earth than Judge Bouldin. Great pity he isn't a woman !'
If there was kindness, real or affected, towards Judge Bouldin,
there was none toward Dr. Crump, but, instead, undisguised,
imdiluted bitterness. His offence was that he had offered himself
as a candidate for Congress in Mr. Randolph's old district, not,
indeed, in opposition to the latter, but, far worse, as the friend,
the vindicator or substitute, unsolicited, and unauthorized by
him. This was a presumption for which there was no atone-
ment and no mercy. The castigation of Dr. Crump was
reserved for the cap-stone of the whole-day speech, as though
his audacity had supplied the materials for the tower, nay, the
very spire, of a climax. In his invective, Mr. Randolph said in
a tone in which contempt and hatred were so blended it was
hard to tell which predominated: *I have a very slight ac-
quaintance with the gentleman. True, he once made me a
visit at my home, but he came uninvited, and departed when
he chose to do so.' Dr. Crump, who was present, and heard
with apparent composure all that was said about him, at-
tempted a vindication of his character from this last attack,
and, stepping forward, as Judge Bouldin desisted from his vain
effort to get a hearing, stated that he did make the visit to
which a reference had been made, but that it was in compli-
ance with an express, urgent, written invitation from Mr.
Randolph — that he had been cordially received, and hospitably
entertained. He went on to detail the occasion, reasons, and
all the circumstances of the invitation and the visit. But Mr.
Randolph would not hear him; for, as soon as he began speak-
ing, the former conmienced his preparations for leaving the
house, and, as he was being supported and led by his body-
guard, from his seat to the door, he discharged his last, the
Parthian arrow — *I never did invite you to my house, and.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 5
what is more, I never mean to do it.' (a) These were the last
words I heard from Mr. Randolph that day. These personal
encounters between the parties named could have consumed
but a small portion of the day."'
The burden of Randolph's speech at Prince Edward
Court House was what he conceived to be the painful
decadence imdergone by Virginia in recent years, and the
inferiority of the younger men of his old district to their
fathers. Thus, after making a slurring, though partly
complimentary, reference to Wm. M. Watkins, the brother
of Henry A. Watkins, (b) he went on to say, according to
his own subsequent version of his words, that his friend,
Henry A. Watkins, although one of the kindest and best
men in the world, would be the first to admit the higher
claims of his father on the country for general utility and
energy of character; that [this sportively] he was too old
to^know much of his father's sons personally but that he
could venture to affirm that, placed in their grandfather's
shoes, and having to keep off the calf whilst the wife
milked the cow, they never would have achieved what the
grandfather had done in point of character and fortime.
The latent malice in these remarks is too manifest to
require comment. Equally slighting, too, were similar
observations made by Randolph on the descendants of
Capt. John Morton, Col. Wm. Morton, Capt. Nat. Price,
Patrick Henry, George Mason, Chief Justice Marshall,
John Wickham and John Taylor of Caroline; **In
short," he said, *'look at the Lees, Washingtons, Ran-
dolphs— what woeful degeneracy."*
Disordered as Randolph's mind was at this time, the
following words from a letter, written by him to Dr.
Brockenbrough from Charlotte Court House immediately
after he had addressed the people of Buckingham County,
' Personal Recollections of the Rev. Jno. S. Kirkpatrick, D.D., MSS.
' Letter from J. R. to H. A. Watkins, Jan. 21, 1832, filed in Coalter's
Fxor. vs. Randolph's exor., Cl'k's Oflfice, Cir. Ct., Petersburg, Va.
6 John Randolph of Roanoke
furnish proof enough that his old literary instinct for form
and color had not deserted him :
"On my road to Buckingham, I passed a night in Farmville,
in an apartment which in England they would not have thought
fit for my servant; nor on the continent did I ever occupy so
mean a one. Wherever I stop, it is the same — walls black and
filthy — bed and furniture sordid — furniture scanty and mean,
generally broken — no mirror — no fire-irons — in short, dirt and
discomfort, universally prevail, and in most private houses the
matter is not mended. The cows milked half a mile off — or not
got up, and no milk to be had at any distance — no Jordan — in
fact, the old gentry are gone and the nouveaux riches, where
they have the inclination, do not know how to live. Biscuit,
not half cuit, every thing, animal and vegetable, smeared with
melted butter or lard. Poverty stalking through the land,
while we are engaged in political metaphysics, and, amidst our
filth and vermin, hke the Spaniard and Portuguese, look down
with contempt on other nations, England and France espe-
cially. We hug our lousy cloaks around us, take another chaw
oftubbackefy float the room with nastiness, or ruin the grate and
fire-irons, where they happen not to be rusty, and try con-
clusions upon constitutional points."* (a)
During the winter of 1 831-1832, Randolph's dementia
assumed a more and more tragic character, to which drink
and the habitual use of opium, fastened upon him by the
promptings of disease and pain, added their dark pigments
too. In the opinion of John Marshall, of Charlotte
County, and Judge Wm. Leigh, his two most intimate
friends, in his last years he was an insane man from the
time of his return from Russia until the month of May,
1832, when his mind cleared up and became once more
comparatively serene; a condition which, with occasional
aberrations, continued almost tmtil thelast hours of his life. "
» Garland, v. 2, 344.
« Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Cl'k's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburgt
Va.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 7
No good purpose would be subserved by going very
deeply into the painful testimony which was brought out
with respect to the insanity of Randolph at this period
during the course of the litigation that was subsequently
waged over his wills.
No small part of his unreasoning imptalses and actions
sprang from his belief that all, or practically all, of his
overseers and slaves had been faithless to him during his
absence. That there had been indeed considerable mis-
conduct on the part of some of his slaves, and a certain
degree of dereliction of duty on the part of his overseers,
evidence is by no means lacking to establish ; but a shortage
in his usual crop and a theft of wool by his negro head-
man would seem to have afforded the only really sub-
stantial justification for a mad resentment which involved
every one on his Roanoke plantations in its excesses.
Among his favorite servants were an old man whom he
called "Daddy Essex,*' and his beloved John and Juba;
but now his heart was steeled against them too. When-
ever Essex came into his presence, he would break out
into a fit of passion. He accused him of keeping a tavern
during his absence and entertaining a peddler, and even
went so far as to strike him with a stick. Of John and
Juba, though he was slow to withdraw his confidence from
John, he said: '*When I arrived in New York, I would
not have taken for John or Juba, or for the smallest child
either of them had, 2,000 guineas ; but now I would as soon
sell them to a negro trader as not. ' ' Finally, he sent off all ,
or nearly all, of his house servants, with a few exceptions,
to a plantation owned by Judge Leigh on Dan River.
Even John was driven for a time into exile from his person.
In place of these trained servants, he introduced a niunber
of ** cornfield'* negroes into his house; among them a field
hand named Moses, whom he called **Bull,** and of whom
he was soon heard saying: ''Moses goes rooting about
the house like a hog.** Once or twice he even either
8 John Randolph of Roanoke
inflicted, or attempted to inflict, personal injuries upon
members of his household. ^
His mind also became enslaved to strange hallucinations.
One was that his life depended upon ass' milk, and some of
his later letters to his friend Nathan Loughborough are
filled with feverish appeals to him to hasten the progress
to Roanoke of certain jennies that Loughborough had
undertaken to forward to him for the purpose of supplying
him with such milk. * Then later, when he had two fine
jennies at Roanoke, and was having them milked daily, his
mind cherished the delusion that he was under a contract
with His Satanic Majesty not to drink any of this milk
until he had purchased two colts or horses which had been
sired by his stallion, Janus. On one occasion, he told
Judge Leigh that he was glad of his arrival, because Mrs.
Leigh and her little boy had been upstairs in his house for
sometime, and that he had had hard work to keep the
devils from them; on another, that there was a man in the
next room writing a dead man's will with a dead man's
hand.
He at times exhibited angry and vindictive feelings
against almost all persons with whom he had had any
intercourse, with a few exceptions, and occasionally he
was possessed by the sheer desire to kill of a maniac. ^
The very first time that Judge Leigh saw him after his
return from Russia he became satisfied that his mind was
disordered.
"My opinion,'' Judge Leigh testified in the litigation over
Randolph's wills, "was formed upon his appearance and man-
ner— and the total change in his language, feelings, and con-
duct. He had in his appearance a fierce wildness; he was ever
restless, scarcely ever still, and took more exercise than I
' Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Cl'k's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va: » Nathan Loughborough, MSS.
3 Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clerk's office, Cir. Ct., Peters-
burg, Va.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 9
thought he was able to bear; he had gusts of extreme passion
without adequate cause, and he seemed to me when I was with
him to sleep scarcely at all.'**
In many respects, as is too often the case when the mind
is dethroned, he was the exact reverse of his former self.
Edmund Badger, one of the proprietors of the hotel in
Philadelphia, in which Randolph died, testified in the
Randolph will litigation that, even in his last hours,
Randolph's manner was "peculiarly pleasing and enter-
taining." Now it was excited, irate, savage. Before, his
mode of living had been generous ; now it was penurious.
His conversation was at times obscene, though John
Marshall, who had known him intimately for years, testi-
fied in the same litigation : ' * I never heard him use such
language previous to his return from Russia. He was
generally very chaste and delicate in his language.** His
relations to women had always been marked by the highest
degree of chivalrous deference and refinement. At this
time, he wrote on one occasion to Henry A. Watkins : * * I
write with a blotting pen, upon greasy paper — unclean, all
offensive in the eye of God. I am under the powerful
influence of the Prince of Darkness, who tempts me with a
beautiful mulattress.*' In the past, his treatment of his
slaves had been so kind and, in many instances, affection-
ate that John Marshall testified in the will litigation
*'that his slaves almost worshipped him**; now he was
harsh and abusive to them to an extreme degree. He
had always been truth itself, and now he repeatedly re-
sorted to cunning or falsehood to carry some freakish
point. '■
If anyone has been so fortunate as never to have had
a relation or friend bereft of reason, and is yet desirous of
knowing how pitiable is the estate of **the fair and radiant
' Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clerk's office, Cir. Ct., Petersbui:g,
Va. ' Id.
10 John Randolph of Roanoke
palace," in which the sotal resides in health, when it is no
longer *'by good angels tenanted,** all that he has to do is
to peer into the black prison-house of frenzy, horror,
sensual nakedness, and despair which the depositions in
the Randolph will litigation exposed to the eye of court
and jury.
About the 25th day of April, 1831, Randolph was re-
moved to the home of John Marshall, at Charlotte Court
House, at a time when his condition was so feeble that
his death seemed near at hand, (a) In the will litigation,
Marshall testified that, while there, Randolph sent for
him very often, and, when he came into his room, would
frequently say: **You are too late, it is all over." And
sometimes he had a small bell in his hand which he would
ring slowly and say: "It is all over**; and sometimes,
instead of ringing the bell himself, he would make John
ring it. Again, at times, he would seem to be perturbed
by some vague fear and would ask Marshall if he would
stand by him, and yet no sooner would Marshall come
into his room than he would exercise all the address, of
which he was capable, to induce him by one suggestion or
another to leave it. But it is gratifying to state that in
the ashes of Randolph's former identity, after he returned
from Russia, there still lived some of its nobler traits.
Though he could no longer say grace at his table without
being at times incited to profanity by some trivial occur-
rence, he still persisted in going through its forms. A
witness in the will litigation, Wyatt Cardwell, testified
that once, when John was given a whipping at his master's
instance for gross misconduct, it was plain that the latter
was pleased to see how lightly the chastisement was
administered. On one occasion , during dinner at Roanoke,
when Judge Leigh was present, Randolph spoke of Judge
Leigh's grave face, and later said that he was sorry that
Leigh had come. But, when he saw that Leigh's feelings
were hurt, he arose from his seat, and took one of his old
'' Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 1 1
friend's hands in both of his and shook it, uttering a sooth-
ing word as he did so in his kindest tone.
More than once, when he was attempting to make a
fresh will, his mind reverted to the desire to emancipate all
his slaves that was such a rich refrain in his life ; though
in executing a previous will which was stricken down after
his death, as the fruit of mental incompetency, he had
forsaken for a time this purpose. He had a small phial of
the opiate that he was in the habit of using so freely after
his return from Russia. It was labelled * * poison, ' ' and he
declared that he kept this phial so that he could use its
contents to put an end to his existence in case he should do
anjrthing dishonorable. Much else had been completely
transformed, but his honorable spirit still strove to work
itself free from the murk of insanity. " (a)
*'I am fast sinking," he said, "into an opium-eating sot;
but, please God! I will shake off the incubus yet before I die;
for, whatever difference of opinion may exist on the subject of
suicide, there can bejnone as to * rushing into the presence of our
Creator' in a state of drunkenness, whether produced by opitun
or brandy.""
But even the sad Acheron or the black Cocjrtus of
mental distraction is lit up by a momentary gleam now
and then. In the possession of the Library of Congress,
are quite a number of letters written by Randolph to
Andrew Jackson between the date of his return from
Russia and the date of his temporary restoration to reason
in May, 1832; and it is impossible to note some of the
vagaries that play over these letters, melancholy as is the
infirmity revealed by them as a whole, without a smile. It
is certain that such an irascible man as Andrew Jackson
would never have submitted as patiently as he did to
» Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Cl'k's OfTce, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
' Garland, v. 2, 544.
12 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph's criticisms in some of the letters on the mem-
bers of his first and second cabinets had he not been fully
conscious of the mental irresponsibility of the writer.
In one letter, Randoph expressed his regret that Jack-
son had been surrounded by such advisers, with a single
exception, as the members of his first cabinet; and also his
fear that ''Leviathan** (the Bank of the United States)
had too many friends among the members of his second
cabinet, and that this was true not only of the * 'monster in
Chestnut Street*' but of the "American System*' and
Internal Improvements too. *
In a later letter, Randolph declared that Jackson*s first
Lord of the Treasury was most assuredly leading him
to the Caudian Forks where he must be politically
Burgoyned. *
In another letter, he informed Jackson that he deemed
it his duty to tell him as a friend that he was surrounded
by evil coimsellors. ^ In the same letter, with his usual
honesty, sane or insane, he let Jackson know that his views
differed from his in regard to the Tariff, Internal Improve-
ments, and the Distribution of the Federal Surplus, and
that, if Jackson were a friend of the Chestnut Street
Monster, as he was its bitter enemy, it would be impossible
for him to support him cordially.
Later, in still another letter, he hinted that ** Levia-
than" was making loans to needy members of Congress
and to Cabinet ministers in embarrassed circumstances,
who had houses full of children and no estate. ^
In yet another letter, he warned Jackson that, if the
latter did not avert the impending struggle between the
great slave-holding interest and the Federal Government
by a prompt redress of the intolerable wrongs of that
» Richm., Oct. 29, 1831, Jackson Papers; v. 79, Libr. Cong.
"Mar. II, 1832, Id.
iDec. 19, 1831, Jackson Papers w. 79, Libr. Cong.
* Roanoke, Mar. 11, 1832, Jackson Papers, v. 80, Libr. Cong.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 13
interest, he should, with Eaxl Grey, ** stand by his order." "
In this letter, he also said :
'*I am resolute not to assist in the subjugation of South
Carolina; but, if she does move (as I fear she will), to make
common cause with her against the usurpations of the Federal
Government and of the Supreme Court especially. The late
infamous decision of those minions of arbitrary power will
give us Georgia. Everything south of Ohio, except perhaps
Kentucky and the western district of Virginia, must be with us.
With this noble country and Cuba, where we can make a hogs-
head of sugar as easily as a pound can be grown on the
Mississippi or in Florida, we shall have a vast empire capable of
indefinite improvement and of supporting easily 40,000,000
of people.**
With Havana and the Bay of Tampa, the only port in the
Gulf of Mexico capable of receiving a first rate line-of-
battle ship, they would have, Randolph also said, a slip-
knot around the throat of the Mississippi, and could
strangle the commerce of the **free States,'' northwest of
the River Ohio, if these States gave them any annoyance.
The imminence of a deadly breach between the Northern
and Southern portions of the United States was not so
great, however, that one of the proudest men in the world,
when he was himself, could not urge Jackson in this letter
to send him as our minister either to London, where Van
Buren then was, or to Paris.
** Van,** he said, **is the best of the set, but he is too great an
intriguer, and besides wants personal dignity and weight of
character. He is an adroit, dapper, Httle managing man,
but he can*t inspire respect, much less veneration. He is very
well in his place — not where he now is, because the English
are the most fastidious people on earth. You may talk as
much nonsense as you please, but you must not betray a
want of education. Now, Van Buren cannot speak or write
» Roanoke, Mar. 18, 1832, Id.
14 John Randolph of Roanoke
the English language correctly, and I can see the eyebrows of
the fashionable raised at his false pronunciation. He always
says 'consitherable* for considerable, etc., etc. A single
substitution of will for shall, or a single false quantity would
blow him up. (a) For either of these embassies I offer you my
services. For that of England I am more fit than any man I
know, unless perhaps Mr. Gallatin. For that and a popular
assembly or a public meeting I am particularly well qualified.
You must not send needy people abroad but especially to
England. Your minister there must gtve as well as receive din-
ners. I ask no outfit — let the one I have serve, and I will go,
stay out my two, three or four years. Don't mistake me, I
am not asking for office — I scorn it and spurn the idea."
In a subsequent letter from Roanoke, Randolph's mind,
or what was left of it, was still running on the same subject,
and he said that, if Jackson would send him to England as
an unpaid, secret, confidential agent, he would discharge
the duties of the mission gratuitously; that his character
stood high with all parties in England ; that Lords Harrow-
by, Calthorpe, and Wynford, late Chief Justice of the
Bench of Common Pleas, looked upon him as a high aristo-
crat, and that even old Eldon was in the habit of giving
him a nod of recognition. *'I stand well with every
interest in England,'* he said. ''There I am Alcibiades;
here Diogenes.*' In the same letter, Randolph further
said: *'In a word I can do, and, if you shall permit me, I
will do, our country and your administration more service
for nothing than you can procure from all your diplomatic
troops abroad, and I serve volunteer and find myself. I
do not ask even a ration." '
Granting that Alcibiades and Diogenes were not beyond
the range of Andrew Jackson's early classical education,
he must have felt somewhat perplexed when he received
these words in an earlier letter from Randolph :
» Roanoke, Mar. 28, 1828 (sic), really 1832, Jackson Papers, v. 80, Libr.
Cong.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 1 5
"But, my dear Sir, your letter has lifted a load from my
mind and put me where I hope ever to stand in my own court
towards you — on a footing of unreserved confidence and
esteem, and, so long as I have this feeling in my own breast, I
shall feel assured of your reciprocal friendship for me. If
Alexander be satisfied of the friendship of Hephaestus, he will
care little about his estimation of his lieutenants. Now, al-
though you are not Alexander (that would be fulsome flattery),
and I trust that I am something better than his minion (the
nature of their connection, if I forget not, was Greek love),
yet, if I could discern in your lieutenants an Eumenes, or even
an Antigonus, Lysimachus, Perdiccas or Antipater he should
have my voice.""
These various letters were attended by an accom-
paniment of violent abuse aimed at various public
characters :
Ritchie was holding with the hare and running with the
hoimds, and, if the bug were worth his resentment, he
could crush him. '
Clay had cut his throat with his own tongue. ^
Calhoun, who had always had a knack of turning young
men's heads, when he was young himself and with a great
character for talents, and yet greater for stem uncom-
promising public virtue, had turned out to be an old
battered *' He-Bawd'*; another Sir Pandarus of Troy,
quoad procurement of offices for his adherents, in order to
obtain the highest for himself. ^ (a)
We have dwelt upon these babblings of a deranged
intellect largely for the purpose of bringing out the gross
injustice of the hostile or unreflecting writers, notably
Powhatan Bouldin, who have garnished their pages with
extravagant incidents culled from the later years of
' Roanoke, Mar. i, 1832, Jackson Papers, v. 80, Libr. Cong.
» Id.f Feb. 26, 1832.
i Id., Mar. 18, 1832.
*Id., March 27, 1832.
i6 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph's life as if they were fair illustrations of what he
was even when sane.
In May, 1832, as we have said, Randolph's mind became
lucid. On the first occasion, when the change became
truly obvious to John Marshall, he was alone with him.
During the interview, Randolph burst into tears and said:
**Bear with me, my friend; this is unmanly, but I am hard
pressed." Apparently he was suffering great pain.
**It is impossible — I speak it reverently — ," he further
said, '*that the Almighty himself, consistent with his holy
counsel, can withhold this bitter cup. It is necessary to
afflict me thus to subdue my stubborn will. *' He then shut
his eyes, uttered a few words of prayer audibly, and then
seemed to be praying in a low whisper." Subsequently,
there was a marked improvement in his appetite, his
spirits, and his disposition. He even gained flesh, or,
rather perhaps, as he put it on a previous occasion in his
life, skin. His temper became cheerful and his judgments
of men, including his political enemies, kinder. * But, even
after the lapse of three or four months, the reaction in his
condition had not been so decided that he could not
describe it as wretched in the extreme. ^
In one respect, insanity did not work any change in
Randolph at all. The political convictions, which he
expressed to Andrew Jackson, when he was insane, were
but his convictions both before he lost, and after he
recovered, his reason. With his return to sanity, he did
not abate one jot of his stem enmity to the United States
Bank, or the protective tariff. While his mind was still
in eclipse, he had said in a letter :
**I know Jackson to be firm on the Bank of the United
States, and I believe the tariff too. In United States Bank
stock there will be a fall, for everything is settled by the Lon-
don prices, and there will be a panic; but the bank will bribe
« Garland , v. 2, 349. * Ibid. 3 Jbid.
'' Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 17
through. I detest it and shall do all I can to defeat it, even by
coming into Congress next election si le Roy (peuple) le veut.
When the Union shall crumble to pieces, the bank will stand;
the courts and its debtors will sustain it in each grain of our
rope of sand."*
If this prophecy proved false, and the bank did crumble
before the Union, it was only because neither bank nor
anything else could well withstand the Bersekir rage of
Andrew Jackson at its worst. Afterwards, when the
bright disk of Randolph's mind was no longer darkened,
he came to the aid of Jackson in a vigorous letter to Mark
Alexander, of Virginia, one of his former Congressional
colleagues :
"I have just received," he said, "your blank envelope
covering the Telegraph of the 2 1 st. I write to entreat you to
tell Warren R. Davis and his colleagues (alas ! for poor John-
ston) that, if by their votes the United States Bank bill shall
pass the House of Representatives, they will receive the curses
loud and deep of every old-school Republican of the South.
To embarrass Jackson is a small gain compared with saddling
the country with that worst and most flagrant of the usurpa-
tions of the Federal Government and the most dangerous
engine against the rights and very existence of the States. I
am warm and abrupt, but I am dying, and have not time to be
more courtly and circumlocutory. The tariff, the internal
improvement jobs, and the Supreme Court combined are not to
be put into the scale against this accursed thing. The man
who supports the bank, and denounces the tariff as uncon-
stitutional, may take his choice between knave or fool, unless
he admits that he is both. In one case, the power to lay duties,
excises, etc., is granted; in the other no such power is given.
The true key is that the abuse under pretence of exercise of any
power (midnight judiciary, etc.) is unconstitutional. This
unlocks every diflSculty. Killing a man may be justifiable
homicide, chance medley, manslaughter or murder according
» Garland, 352, Jan. 10, 1832.
VOL. n — a
1 8 John Randolph of Roanoke
to the motives and circumstances of the case; an unwise but
honest exercise of a power may be blamed, but it is not uncon-
stitutional ; but every usurped power (as the bank) is so."*
The bank bill passed both houses of Congress, but was
vetoed by Jackson, who never rested until ** Leviathan"
was floating lifeless on its side with its white upturned
belly exposed to scorn. But, before Jackson vetoed the
bank bill, events had been in train to produce a lasting
rupture between Jackson and Randolph. The latter
hated, with an inappeasable hatred, the protective tariff,
which, beginning in 1824, throve so rapidly on the suc-
cessive triumphs of its own greedy rapacity that Randolph
could say of it even more truly in 1832 than he had said
of it in 1824:
**I cannot believe that we are at any time hereafter long
to be exempt from the demands of those sturdy beggars who
will take no denial. Every concession does but render every
fresh demand and new concession more easy. It is like those
dastard nations who vainly think to buy peace. "^
Subsequently, when the truth was brought home to him
that South Carolina was inflexibly resolved to nullify
the tariflf of 1832, that Jackson was inflexibly resolved to
enforce the laws of the Union at any cost of treasure or
blood, and that the principle of State Sovereignty, to
which he had been so long attached, was about to be
sacrificed between the very horns of its own altar, he felt
that the time had come, much as he admired the man of
whom he had so often spoken as the **old hero," and
deeply grateful as he was to him for his unfailing loyalty,
gentleness, and compassion, to live up to the assurance
that he had given to Edward Everett in his speech on
Retrenchment and Reform, when he turned upon Everett
with these words :
* Garland, v. 2, 353. •A. qf C, 1823-24; v. 2, 237a.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 19
"The gentleman from Massachusetts warned us that, if the
individual we seek to elevate shall succeed, he will in his turn
become the object of public pursuit, and that the same pack
will be unkennelled at his heels that have run his rival down.
It may be so. I have no hesitation to say that, if his conduct
shall deserve it, and I live, I shall be one of that pack; because
I maintain the interest of stockholders, against presidents,
directors, and cashiers."'
Randolph had already, with the first flashes of the coming
storm, declared that he would have himself buckled on his
horse, Radical, and would fight for the South to the last
breath. ^ And now, feeble as he was, he passed from county
to county in his former district, summoning all who had ever
felt the spell of his eye or voice to the shock of the direful
and bloody contest which seemed to be actually at hand.
As soon as he had heard of the Proclamation issued
against South Carolina by Jackson, of which it may be
said in the words of John Adams about an earlier event
in our history slightly paraphrased, * ' Then was the child
Nationality bom,'* he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough :
*' Your letter of the 12th was received late last night, whilst
I was under the influence of morphine and blue-pill; but, such
was the interest I took in it and in the Jesuitical comments
of Mr. 'Enquirer* Ritchie on the ferocious and bloodthirsty
proclamation of our Djezzar Pacha, (a) that I did not close an
eye until daybreak. I am now just out of bed (i o'clock p.m.)
and not more than half alive; indeed not so much. The
apathy of our people is most alarming. If they do not rouse
themselves to a sense of our condition, and put down this
wretched old man, the country is irretrievably ruined. The
mercenary troops, who have embarked for Charleston, have
not disappointed me; they are working in their vocation, poor
devils. I trust that no quarter will be given to them." ^
* Bouldin,30i.
'Garland, v. 2, 358.
i Dec. 16, 1832, Garland, v. 2, 359.
\
20 John Randolph of Roanoke
A week or so later, Randolph wrote to Jacob Harvey:
** My life is ebbing fast. What will the New York Evening
Post say to Ritchie's apology for the proclamation in his Enquirer
of the 1st inst? Never was there so impudent a thing. It
seems then that the President did not know, good easy man,
what his proclamation contained. Verily, I believe it. He is
now all for law and the civil power and shudders at blood.
'Save me from my friends,' is a good old Spanish proverb, but
his soi disant friends are his bitterest enemies, and use him as a
tool for their own unhallowed purposes of guilty ambition.
They have first brought him into odium and then sunk him
into contempt ! Alas ! Alas ! " ^
Later, during the same month, Randolph wrote to
Harvey :
** I am now much worse than when I wrote you last and see
no probability of my ever recovering sufficiently to leave this
place. The springs of life are worn out. Indeed, in the
abject state of the public mind, there is nothing worth living
for. It is a merciful dispensation of Providence that death
can release the captive from the clutches of the tyrant. I was
not bom to endure a master; I could not brook military
despotism in Europe, but at home it is not to be endured. I
could not have believed that the people would so soon have
shown themselves unfit for free government. I leave to
General Jackson, and the Hartford men, and the ultra Feder-
alists and tories, and the office-holders and office-seekers,
their triumph over the liberties of the country. They will stand
damned to everlasting fame.'* ^
In his speeches to the People of his former District,
though so frail that he had to speak for the most part from
his chair, he spoke at least once, as we shall see further
on, with commanding power. Nor did he ever exhibit
more address, perseverance, or masterful force of will
« Roanoke, Jan. 4, 1833, The New Mirror, v. 2, 102.
'Jan. 31, 1833, Ibid.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 21
than he did in obtaining from his old constituents reso-
lutions denunciatory of the political doctrines promul-
gated in the Proclamation. Andrew Jackson did not lacic
friends in Randolph's home district ; nor were patriotic and
clear-sighted men wanting in it who had no sympathy
whatever with the nullification movement inaugurated
by Calhoim and the other South Carolina leaders of his
faction; but Randolph's former constituents, as a rule,
were infatuated with his extreme ideas about State Sover-
eignty and, wherever he went, with but little dissent, they
adopted his resolutions condemning the Proclamation.
With the nullification dogma of Calhoim Randolph had
no patience whatever. Subtle abstractions were always
abhorrent to his practical mind; but the right of
Revolution, that is the right of renoimcing the Federal
Union altogether in a proper cause, was one that nothing
could have induced him to surrender. As far back as the
tariff discussion in 1824, he had said:
** And I say again, if we are to submit to such usurpations,
give me George Granville, give me Lord North for a master.
It is in this point of view that I most deprecate the bill. If
from the language I have used, any gentleman shall believe I
am not as much attached to this Union as anyone on this
floor, he will labor under a great mistake. But there is no
magic in this word Union; I value it as the means of preserving
the liberty and happiness of the people. Marriage itself is a
good thing; but the marriages of Mezentius were not so
esteemed. The marriage of Sinbad the Sailor with the corse
of his deceased wife was an union; and just such an union will
this be if by a bare majority in both Houses this bill shall
become a law.*** (a)
Even through the distorting haze of madness, with the
prescience which was one of his remarkable gifts, he had
seen the real significance of the conflict between South
^ A.oj C, 1823-24; 2368.
22 John Randolph of Roanoke
Carolina and the Federal Government over the protective
tariff. He had predicted that civil war was at hand ; that
South Carolina would fight, and that Jackson would then
indeed hang as high as Haman Calhoun, Hajme, Mc-
Duffie, and Hamilton, the chiefs of the Nullification Party
in South Carolina, if he could lay his hands on them. In
one of his distraught moments he wrote to Jackson that
Calhoun had fallen into the very trap that had caught
and destroyed Clay : * * He is self-mutilated, ' * he declared ;
"like the fanatic that emasculated himself.** '
Towards the end of the year 1832, after he had recovered
his reason, Randolph wrote to Jackson: **I wish most
intensely that I could have even half an hour's interview
with you.'* * Two days later, he wrote to him that he was
then in a situation to recede with dignity, and that he
spoke the language of many of Jackson's staunchest
friends when he expressed the hope that Jackson would
give to their sister. South Carolina, ample time for con-
sideration.^ And now, knowing as few knew, how imbend-
ing Jackson's will was, he was more than willing even to
call in his arch foe, Henry Clay, as a buffer between it
and the Commonwealth upon which it was about to
descend with inexorable force.
In his speech at Buckingham Court House, Randolph is
reported as saying to his audience :
"I cannot express to you how deeply I am penetrated
with a sense of the danger which at this moment threatens its
existence [the existence of the Union]. If Madison filled the
Executive Chair, he might be bullied into some compromise;
if Monroe was in power, he might be coaxed into some adjust-
ment of this difficulty; but Jackson is obstinate, headstrong,
and fond of fight. I fear matters must come to an open rup-
» Roanoke, Mar. 28, 1828 (sic), really 1832, Jackson Papers, v. 80, Libr.
Cong.
' Charlotte C. H., Dec. 4, 1832, Jackson Papers, v. 81, Libr. Cong.
3 Id.f Dec. 6, 1832, Jackson Papers, v. 81, Libr. Cong.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 23
ture; if so, this Union is gone. There is one man, and one man
only, who can save this Union; that man is Henry Clay. I
know he has the power; I believe he will be found to have
the patriotism and firmness equal to the occasion."'
But it was at Charlotte Court House, on Feb. 4, 1833,
that Randolph shone at this time as few men have ever
done when they could say of themselves truthfully as he
said of himself on this occasion that the prostration of
their mental powers had kept so closely abreast with that
of their bodily that it was hard for them to decide which
rode the foremost horse. His object at this meeting, to
use a modem political term, was to **jam through,'* by
his eloquence and over-bearing will, a series of resolutions
condenming the Proclamation.
Happily for us, Winslow Robinson was the Secretary of
the meeting, and drew up a report of its proceedings which
was long, if it is not still, preserved. The report says that
Randolph was in a state of extreme feebleness ; that he had
traversed the distance between Roanoke and Charlotte
Court House [some 12 or 13 miles] the day before; that
he was lifted to his seat on the bench of the County Court ;
and that he rose and spoke a few minutes; but soon sat
down exhausted and continued to speak sitting; though
sometimes for a moment the excitement of his feelings
brought him to his feet ; and that he ended his speech by
moving a set of resolutions of which a copy was annexed to
the report. *
It was at Randolph's request that the use of the Court
House for the occasion had been permitted, and at his
request, too, the County magistrates who held their
sessions in it adjourned as soon as he appeared in the build-
ing. He made the requests because in his debilitated
condition at that time it was necessary for him to measure
out his strength drop by drop. ^
» Garland, v. 2, 361. ■ Bouldin, 192. ^ Jd.^ 175.
24 John Randolph of Roanoke
By Bouldin we are told that he began with three dress
coats on, but that before he concluded he had on only one,
and that he spoke with a glass of toddy beside him from
which he drank freely from time to time. '
The resolutions submitted by Randolph on this occa-
sion are worth reading, if for no other reason because of
the lucidity and point which characterize everything of
this kind that ever left his hands. The last resolution
of the series relates to the mission upon which Benjamin
Watkins Leigh had been recently sent by the State of Vir-
ginia to South Carolina for the purpose of promoting a
reconciliation between that State and the Federal
Government.
** I. Resolved, that, while we retain a grateful sense of the
many services rendered by Andrew Jackson, Esq., to the
United States, we owe it to our country and to oiu* posterity
to make oiu* solemn protest against many of the doctrines of
his late proclamation.
*'2. Resolved, that Virginia 'is, and of right ought to be,
a free, sovereign, and independent State;* that she became so
by her own separate act, which has been since recognized by
all the civilized world, and has never been disavowed, retracted,
or in any wise impaired or weakened by any subsequent act of
hers.
"3. Resolved, that when, for purposes of common defence
and common welfare, Virginia entered into a strict league of
amity and alliance with the other twelve colonies of British
North America, she parted with no portion of her sovereignty,
although, from the necessity of the case, the authority to en-
force obedience thereto was, in certain cases and for certain,
purposes, delegated to the common agents of the whole
Confederacy.
"4. Resolved, that Virginia has never parted with the
right to recall the authority so delegated for good and sufficient
cause, and to secede from the Confederacy, whenever she shall
« Bouldin, 175.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 25
find the benefits of union exceeded by its evils; union being
the means of securing liberty and happiness, and not the end
to which these should be sacrificed.
"5. Resolved, that the ALLEGIANCE of the people of
Virginia is due to HER; that to her their obedience is due,
while to them she owes protection against all the consequences
of such obedience.
"6. Resolved, that we have seen with deep regret that
Andrew Jackson, Esq., President of the United States, has
been influenced by designing coimsellers to subserve the
purposes of their own guilty ambition, to disavow the prin-
ciples to which he owed his election to the Chief Magistracy of
the Government of the United States, and to transfer his real
friends and supporters, bound hand and foot, to the tender
mercies of his and their bitterest enemies — ^the w//ra-Federal-
ists, uUra-hank, tt//ra-intemal improvement, and Hartford
Convention, men — ^the habitual scofiFers at States Rights — and
to their instrument — ^the venal and prostituted press — by
which they have endeavored, and but too successfully, to
influence and mislead public opinion.
"7. Resolved, that Virginia will be found her own worst
enemy, whenever she consents to number among her friends
those who are never true to themselves but when they are
false to their coxmtry.
"8. Resolved, that we owe it to justice, while denouncing
the portentous combination between General Jackson and
the late imhallowed coalition of his and our enemies, to acquit
Them of any dereliction of principle, and to acknowledge that
they have but acted in their vocation.
"9. Resolved, that we cannot consent to adopt principles
which we have always disavowed, merely because they have
been adopted by the President; and, although we believe that
we shall be in a lean and proscribed minority, we are prepared
again to take up our cross, confident of success under that
banner, so long as we keep the faith, and can have access to the
public ear.
"10. Resolved, that, while we utterly reprobate the doc-
trine of Nullification, as equally weak and mischievous, we can-
not for that reason give our countenance to principles equally
26 John Randolph of Roanoke
unfounded, and in the highest degree dangerous to the liberties
of the People.
'*ii. Resolved, that we highly approve of the mission of
Benjamin Watkins Leigh, not only as in itself expedient and
judicious, but as uniting upon the man the best qualified,
whether for abilities, integrity, and principles, moral and
political, beyond all others in the Commonwealth or in the
United States, for the high, arduous, and delicate task which
has been devolved upon him by the unanimous suffrage of the
Assembly, and as we believe of the people. ^ (a)
'Signed
'John Randolph of Roanoke,
ii
Chairman."
The submission of the resolutions was followed by a
powerful speech of Randolph's which was heard by two
auditors whose impressions we shall bring forward in a
later chapter of this book. On motion they were referred
to a committee, consisting of the following gentlemen,
whose family names, so strange to the eyes of many of our
readers, and yet so familiar to every resident of Charlotte
County, we recall, if for no other reason, because nothing
could more convincingly establish than a little inquiry
into the standing of these gentlemen would do how happy
in many respects, most vital to the well-being of a
Commonwealth, was any community in which the suffrage
was limited to such a class of individuals as they repre-
sented: Col. Clement Carrington, Captain Thomas Pet-
tus, Henry A. Watkins, William M. Watkins, Robert
Morton, Samuel D. Morton, John Coleman, B. W. Lester,
George Hannah, John Marshall, John Thomas, John H.
Thomas, Henry Madison, Dr. Isaac Read, William B.
Green, Joseph Friend, Edward B. Fowlkes, Matthew J.
Williams, Samuel Venable, William Bacon, John Booth,
Francis Barnes, William H. Dennis, Richard Venable, Jr.,
Joseph M. Daniel, Thomas F. Spencer, Paul Carrington,
» Bouldin, 190.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 27
John Daniel, Charles Raine, Benjamin Marshall, Colonel
Marshall, J. H. Marshall, Cornelius Barnes, Dr. Hoge,
Dr. Bouldin, Elisha Hundley, Dr. Patillo, Dr. Edwin
Price, Dr. Garden, Samuel Daniel, Winslow Robinson,
Nicholas Edmunds, Major Gaines, R. I. Gaines, Henry
Carrington, Edward W. Henry, Thomas T. Bouldin,
James W. Bouldin, William B. Watkins, Anderson Mor-
ton, John Morton, Thomas A. Morton, Martin Hancock,
D. B. Hancock, Clement Hancock, Colonel H. Spencer,
G. C. Friend, Jacob Morton, Wyatt Cardwell, William
Smith, Colonel Thomas Read, Thomas Read, Archibald
A. Davidson, William T. Scott, Major Thomas Nelson,
Isham Harvey, Dr. Joel Watkins, T. E. Watkins, Major
Samuel Baldwin, Robert Carrington, and John Randolph
of Roanoke. '
When Randolph, who was practically the Dictator of
the occasion, was making up the committee, he exclaimed:
**Call Col. Clem Carrington, the man who shed his blood
at Eutaw — none of your dnmken stagger-weeds of the
court yard ! " Col. Carrington came forward with his hat
in his hand; but, when requested to endorse the resolu-
tions, he promptly said: *'I am for Jackson and the
Union, Sir," and retired.
"Mr. Green,'* Randolph said, addressing Wm. B. Green,
** I know you are dead shot against Jackson, and I appoint
you one of the Committee." Mr. Green replied: **I
am also dead shot against Nullification"; but, after some
explanations by Randolph, Green, to his lasting regret
consented to serve upon the committee, as did several
other dissidents who were brought over by Randolph
in the same way. ^
When appointed, the members of the committee organ-
ized with Capt. Henry A. Watkins in the chair, and with
Winslow Robinson as Secretary. Capt. William M.
* Bouldin, 192.
' /^., 195-
28 John Randolph of Roanoke
Watkins then moved that the meeting adjoiim to some
future day, but the motion was lost ; whereupon he with-
drew from the committee; and the resolutions were
adopted seriatim, with only a scattering opposition here
and there to any of them. ' (a)
Before they were adopted, however, a painful colloquy
had taken place between Randolph and Captain William
M. Watkins. Addressing himself to the Captain, Ran-
dolph declared that he did not ** expect an old Yazoo
speculator to approve of them." In reply, Watkins rose
and denied that he was any such speculator; but Randolph,
looking him steadily in the face pointed his long fore-
finger at him and said: **You are a Yazoo man, Mr.
Watkins." Again, Capt. Watkins rose, agitated and
embarrassed, and entered into some explanations; and
again, with the same deliberation, Randolph simply
repeated: **You are a Yazoo man, Mr. Watkins." A
third time, Capt. Watkins rose, this time overwhelmed
with chagrin and mortification ; but, as he rose, it was only
to face the same accusing finger and the same imrelenting
indictment: **You are a Yazoo man"; and there was
nothing for him to do except to retire from the meeting. *
Of the general impression created by Randolph on this
occasion upon his audience, it is enough at this time to
mention that, in concluding his report, Winslow Robinson
says that, in responding to a final resolution of the meet-
ing, thanking him for his open and decided support of the
rights of the States and his strenuous and efficient opposi-
tion to the odious consolidating doctrine of the President's
late proclamation, Mr. Randolph expressed his thanks
in a speech of considerable length, in the course of which
all the warmest sympathies which had so long united
him to his old constituents seemed to be awakened ; and
that on the breaking up of the meeting they parted with
« Bouldin, 193.
«/d ., 197.
" Like Sweet Bells Jangled " 29
feelings such as no man besides had ever excited.' (a)
Until recently, the fact seems to have been lost sight of
that Randolph did go with his brother Beverley to Wash-
ington in the winter of 1832-33. They had an interview
with Jackson, and, afterwards, were among the guests to
whom he gave a dinner at the White House. So provoked ,
however, was Jackson by a certain article which appeared
in the Telegraph at this time, and which he attributed
to Randolph, that, when Beverley Tucker subsequently
called at the White House, Jackson, supposing that Ran-
dolph was with him, sent word that he was too busy to see
them.
> Bouldin, 195.
CHAPTER II
The End
In the succeeding April, Randolph endeavored to make
a tour of the counties embraced in his former district. He
had now formed the idea that exercise by what he called
"gestation** was indispensable to his existence.' His
body, however, had really grown too weak to flush his
brain properly when he was speaking. Indeed, he had
to give up one effort to reach Buckingham Court House
and to return from Buckingham County to Charlotte
Court House re infecta (as he said); and when he got
to Charlotte Court House on this occasion, he was
too knocked up by fatigue to keep on to Roanoke. He
was present, however, at Cumberland Court House on
election day in the month of April; and thence he pro-
ceeded directly northwards for the purpose of taking the
packet, Montezuma y at Philadelphia for England.*
The first night of his journey, he spent at Clay Hill,
the residence of his intimate friend, Barksdale, in Amelia
County. Later, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough from
Geo. W. Johnson's, near Moody's, in Chesterfield County:
' ' I am here very ill. I have little expectation of ever leaving
this apartment except on men*s shoulders; an act of impru-
dence on the night of my arrival has nearly sealed my doom.
Yet, with my characteristic reaction, I may go to Petersburg
tomorrow and on Monday to Richmond. Pray secure me, if
' Garland, v. 2, 364.
30
The End 31
practicable, a parlor and bed-room adjoining on a lower floor,
and speak to Ball to reserve stalls for 5 horses and 3 servants. " '
The reaction did come, and enabled him to get to
Petersburg where he not only attended the races, but even
made a speech. Subsequently, he passed through Rich-
mond (a) , and from The Merry Oaks, beyond Richmond,
he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough in these words :
"Arrived here last night, through torrents of rain that
deluged the roads, and made them run like rivers; John and
Juba as wet as drowned rats, but it was an admirable sedative
(you are an *Embro* man, and possibly a disciple of Cullen)
for John's over-stimulant. Quant d moi, I came every foot
of the way in torttu'e, having been so lumbered by John that
I might as well have been in the pillory; and each jolt over
stone, stump, or pole, or old fence rails left in the road, when
the new one was ntiade, or the old ones 'upset* for the benefit
of travelling carriages, those of gentlemen in especial^ as the
Waverly man has it.
"At Botts's gate. Half Sink, I was fain to call and ask the
price of his land, and sponge upon him for the night; for
I was in agony, but he was gone to the Baltimore races. So,
after making some better arrangements, and watering the tits
which were half choked with thirst, I proceeded on over the
slashes and 'cross ways,* with peine forte et dure, to the Old
Oaks, ignorant until then that the stage road had been changed;
or I would have taken the other, except on account of the
house If Botts's land lay in any other county, except Hen-
rico and especially, if it were on the South Side, I would buy it,
and take my chance for selling Spring Hill, which, except in
point of soil, has every advantage over Half Sink.'*^
The distance between Merry Oaks and the Potomac
was traversed so rapidly that Randolph reached the
landing at Potomac Creek in advance of the other trav-
ellers who were transported thither by stage coaches from
» Garland, v. 2, 364.
^ Id., 365.
32 John Randolph of Roanoke
Fredericksburg. For his movements from this point to
Philadelphia, where he died, we are indebted almost ex-
clusively to information gathered by Garland in the
preparation of his biography from sources no longer
available to us except in his pages. This information,
therefore, we shall lay before the reader in Garland's very
words :
**When the approach of the boat was announced, he was
brought out of the room by his servants, on a chair, and seated
in the porch, where most of the stage passengers were
assembled. His presence seemed to produce considerable
restraint on the company; and, though he appeared to solicit
it, none were willing to enter into conversation; one gentleman
only, who was a former acquaintance, passed a few words with
him; and, so soon as the boat reached the landing, all hurried
off, and left him nearly alone, with his awkward servants as
his only attendants. An Irish porter, who seemed to be very
careless and awkward in his movements, slung a trunk around
and struck Mr. Randolph with considerable force against the
knee. He uttered an exclamation of great suffering. The
poor Irishman was much terrified, and made the most humble
apology, but Mr. Randolph stormed at him, would listen to no
excuse, and drove him from his presence. This incident
increased the speed of the bystanders, and, in a few minutes,
not one was left to assist the dying man.
"Dr. Dunbar, an eminent physician, of Baltimore, witnessing
what happened, and feeling his sympathies awakened towards
a man so feeble, and apparently so near his end, walked up to
the chair, as the servants were about to remove their master,
and said: *Mr. Randolph, I have not the pleasure of your
acquaintance, but I have known your brother from my child-
hood; and I see you have no one with you but yoiu* servants —
you appear to require a friend. I will be happy to render you
any assistance in my power, while we are together on the boat.*
He looked up, and fixed such a searching gaze on the doctor as
he never encoimtered before. But, having no other motive
but kindness for a suffering fellow-man, he returned the scru-
tinizing look with steadiness. As Mr. Randolph read the coun-
The End 33
tenance of the stranger, who had thus unexpectedly proffered
his friendship, his face suddenly cleared up, and, with a most
winning smile and real politeness, and, with a touching tone
of voice, grasping the Doctor's hand, he said, *I am most
thankful to you. Sir, for your kindness; for I do, indeed, want a
friend '
"He was now, with the Doctor's asistance, carefully carried
on board, and set down in the most eligible part of the cabin.
He seemed to be gasping for breath, as he sat up in the chair;
having recovered a little, he turned to the Doctor, and said:
*Be so good, Sir, if you please, as to give me your name.'
The Doctor gave him his name, his profession, and place of
residence.
"*Ah! Doctor,' said he, *I am passed surgery — passed
surgery!' *I hope not, Sir,* the doctor replied. With a
deeper and more pathetic tone, he repeated, */ am passed
surgery.*
"He was removed to a side berth, and laid in a position where
he could get air. The Doctor also commenced fanning him.
His face was wrinkled, and of a parched yellow, like a female
of advanced age. (a) He seemed to repose for a moment, but
presently he roused himself, throwing round an intense and
searching gaze. The Doctor was reading a newspaper.
" *What paper is that. Doctor?*
"'The— Gaze//€, Sir.'
" *A very scurrilous paper. Sir — a very scurrilous paper.'
"After a short pause, he continued, *Be so good. Sir, as to
read the foreign news to me — the debates in Parliament, if
you please.'
"As the names of the speakers were mentioned, he com-
mented on each. *Yes,* said he, *I knew him when I was in
England'; then went on to make characteristic remarks on
each person.
"In reading, the Doctor fell upon the word budget ; he pro-
nounced the letter u short, as in bud — budget. Mr. Randolph
said quickly, but with great mildness and courtesy, Termit
me to interrupt you for a moment. Doctor; I would pronounce
that word budget; like oo in book.' *Very well, Sir,' said the
Doctor pleasantly, and continued the reading; to which Mr.
VOL.U--I
34 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph listened with great attention. Mr. Randolph now
commenced a conversation about his horses, which he seemed to
enjoy very much; Gracchus particularly he spoke of with
evident delight. As he lay in his berth, he showed his extremi-
ties to the Doctor which were much emaciated. He looked at
them mournfully, and expressed his opinion of the hopelessness
of his condition. The Doctor endeavored to cheer him with
more hopeful views. He listened politely, but evidently
derived no consolation from the remarks. Supper was now
announced; the Captain and the Steward were very attentive
in carrying such dishes to Mr. Randolph as they thought would
be pleasing to him. He was plentifully supplied with fried
clams; which he ate with a good deal of relish. The Steward
asked him if he would have some more clams. *I do not know,'
he replied, 'Doctor, do you think I could take some more
clams?* *No, Mr. Randolph, had you asked me earlier, I
would have advised you against taking any; for they are very
injurious; but I did not conceive it my right to advise you.'
*Yes, you had. Doctor; and I would have been much obliged
to you for doing so. Steward, I can't take any more; the
Doctor thinks they are not good for me.'
"After the table was cleared off, one of the gentlemen, the
one referred to as a former acquaintance of Mr. Randolph's,
observed that he should like to get some information about
the boats north of Baltimore. *I can get it for you, Sir,'
replied Mr. Randolph. 'Doctor do me the favor to hand me a
little wicker-basket, among my things in the berth below.'
The basket was handed to him; it was full of cHppings from
newspapers. He could not find the advertisement he sought
for. The gentleman, with great politeness, said, 'Don't
trouble yourself, Mr. Randolph.' Several times he repeated,
'Don't trouble yourself. Sir.' At length, Randolph became
impatient, and, looking up at him with an angry expression of
countenance, said: *I do hate to be interrupted!' The
gentleman, thus rebuked, immediately left him.
"Mr.Randolph then showed another basket of the same kind,
filled with similar scraps from newspapers, and observed that
he was always in the habit, when anything struck him
in his reading as likely to be useful for future reference, to
The End 35
cut it out and preserve it in books, which he had for that
purpose; and that he had at home several volumes of that
kind.
"He showed his arrangements for travelling in Europe; and,
after a while, seeing the Doctor writing, he said, 'Doctor, I
see you are writing; will you do me the favor to write a letter
for me to a friend in Richmond?' 'Certainly, Sir.' *The
gentleman,' he continued, 'stands A. No. i among men —
Dr. Brockenbrough, of Richmond.* The letter gave direc-
tions about business matters, principally, but it contained some
characteristic remarks about his horses. He exulted in their
having beaten the stage; and concluded, *So much for blood.'
'Now,' said he, 'sign it. Doctor.'
" 'How shall I sign it, Mr. Randolph. Sign it John Randolph
of Roanoke?'
" 'No, Sir, sign it Randolph of Roanoke.'
"It was done accordingly. 'Now, Doctor, said he, *do
me the favor to add a postscript.' The postscript was
added: 'I have been so fortunate as to meet with Dr.
of , on board this boat, and to form his acquaintance, and
I can never be sufficiently grateful for his kind attentions to
me.*
"So soon as the letter was concluded, Mr. Randolph drew
together the curtains of his berth. The Doctor frequently
heard him groaning heavily and breathing so laboriously that
several times he approached the side of the berth to listen
if it were not the beginning of the death-struggle. He often
heard him also exclaiming, in agonized tones, *0h God! Oh
Christ !' ; while he was engaged in ejaculatory prayer.
"He now became very restless, was impatient and irascible
with his servants, but continued to manifest the utmost kind-
ness and courtesy towards Dr. Dunbar.
"When the boat reached the wharf at Alexandria, where the
Doctor was to leave, he approached the side of the berth, and
said, 'Mr. Randolph, I must now take leave of you.* He
begged the Doctor to come and see him at Gadsby*s; then,
grasping his hand, he said, 'God bless you, Doctor; I never can
forget your kind attentions to me. * "*
» Garland, v. 2, 366-369.
36 John Randolph of Roanoke
During the preceding winter, when Randolph had
visited Washington, a reconciliation had taken place
between him and Henry Clay; from whom he had again
become estranged after the duel. In a letter to his inti-
mate friend. Judge Brooke, Clay told him just how this
result was brought about.
** Observing him in the Senate one night," he said, ** feeble,
and looking as if he were not long for this world, and being
myself engaged in a work of peace (the Ccmpromise Tariff),
with corresponding feelings I shook hands with him. The
salutation was cordial on both sides. I afterwards left a
card at his lodgings, where I understand he has been confined
by sickness."*
The next day after his arrival in Washington, Randolph
went to the Senate chamber, and secured a seat just behind
Clay, who happened at that time to be addre^ing the
Senate. *' Raise me up, " said Randolph, **I want to hear
that voice again." At the conclusion of the address,
Randolph's presence was brought to Clay's attention,
^d Clay advanced towards him to speak to him; Ran-
dolph saying, as he approached, to a gentleman near
himself, * * Raise me up. ' * Clay offered his hand, exclaim-
ing: **Mr. Randolph, I hope you are better, Sir. " **No,
Sir," replied Randolph, **I am a dying man, and I came
here expressly to have this interview with you. "^ They
shook hands, and neither in enmity, nor in good will, were
they ever to see each other again.
Randolph went on to Philadelphia, but, when he reached
that city, a storm was raging, and the only carriage that
John could obtain for him was a miserable hack with all
its glasses broken. In this, he was driven through the
storm from hotel to hotel in search of lodgings. At
length, he was taken to the City Hotel, No. 41 N. Third
' Lifcy etc., of Henry Clay, by Calvin Colton, v. 2, 262.
» Garland, v. 2, 369.
The End 37
St., kept by Edmund Badger. When Badger came out
to meet him, he asked if he could be accommodated.
Badger replied that his hotel was crowded but that he
would do the best that he could for him. On hearing
this, Randolph lifted up his hands and exclaimed : * * Great
God ! I thank thee ; I shall be among friends, and be taken
care of. " '
What happened from this time imtil his death four days
later, we have been told in a series of highly interesting
statements made by Dr. Josiah Parrish, a Quaker physi-
cian, of very high repute; his son, Dr. Isaac Parrish,
his friend and former pupil. Dr. Francis West, a brother
of Captain West, Randolph's sea-captain friend, and
Condy Raguet, the editor of a State-Rights and Free
Trade publication of the time.
Randolph arrived at Philadelphia on Monday, May
20, 1833. He was so ill that Badger suggested that he
should send for a physician, and he was induced reluctantly
to assent. After running over the names of seven or eight
Philadelphia physicians, including Drs. Chapman and
Physick, he said to Badger: **Well you have a Quaker
doctor here of a good deal of celebrity — Dr. Parrish; go
for him. '* He had heard of the Doctor through William
B. Giles, who had been under his care at one time.
Dr. Parrish found Randolph much disturbed over the
difficulty which he had experienced in obtaining lodgings,
and so weak that he could scarcely expectorate; a fact
which interfered distressingly with his respiration. He
appeared fully conscious of his danger; informed the
Doctor that he had attended several courses of lectures
on anatomy; described his symptoms with professional
accuracy, and declared that he must die unless he could
expel the purulent matter which was oppressing him. Dr.
Parrish asked him how long he had been sick. He re-
plied: ''Don't ask me that question; I have been sick all
' Garland, v. 2, 370.
38 John Randolph of Roanoke
my life"; and, when the Doctor felt his pulse, he said:
**You can form no judgment by my pulse; it is so pecu-
liar. *' Realizing the sensitive nature of his patient, the
Doctor cautiously remarked that Randolph had been
an invalid so long that he must have acquired a correct
knowledge of the general course of practice suited to his
case ; to which he answered : * * Certainly, at 40 a fool or
physician, you know.** And when the Doctor observed
that there were idiosyncracies in many constitutions, and
proceeded to ascertain what was peculiar about his, he
said: '*I have been an idiosyncracy all my life." "All
preparations of camphor invariably injure me," he
asserted. As to ether, it would blow him up; but that he
was accustomed to the free use of opium in some form or
other the Doctor soon learned. Indeed, on one occasion
Randolph told Dr. Parrish either that he did or could
take opium like a Turk.
In the course of the interview, Randolph introduced the
subject of the Quakers, praising them in his characteristic
way for their ** neatness, economy, order, and comfort in
everything." ** Right in everything except politics," he
affirmed, ** There always twistical**; and, before the
Doctor departed, Randolph repeated a part of the Epis-
copal Litany with apparent fervor. He felt so wretched
that he requested Badger to remain with him all night;
which Badger readily consented to do; but, in a few
minutes, he asked him whether he had a wife, and, when
Badger replied that he had, he said: **I*11 not keep you
from your wife; go home; go to your wife"; and Badger
had to go.
The next morning. Dr. Parrish was aroused by a
summons from his patient, and, when he called on him,
Randolph apologized in handsome terms for sending for
him, and, from that time on until he died, the Doctor
attended him regularly. Ill as he was, the same day,
with Badger as a companion, he was driven up Arch Street
The End 39
as far as Broad and then down Chestnut Street as far as
the United States Bank, where Nicholas Biddle, its presi-
dent, came outside at his request, and conversed with
him. As he went along with Badger, he pointed out
various houses to him, and told him who occupied them
when he was in Philadelphia as a member of Congress.
He was a trying patient. Several times, Dr. Parrish
fotmd it necessary to say to him that, while he felt every
disposition to treat him with kindness and respect, he was
not insensible to what was due to himself. Once when
the Doctor proposed a medical consultation, leaving to
Randolph the choice of the consulting physician, the
latter assured the Doctor that he had entire confidence
in him, but objected to the proposal with the remark:
"In a multitude of counsel there is confusion; it leads to
weakness and indecision; the patient may die while the
doctors are staring at each other. *'
Dr. Parrish tells us that he foimd that, beneath Ran-
dolph's irritability, petulance, and impatience, there were
some noble traits of character and a keen sense of pro-
priety which awaited only the right sort of appeal to
manifest itself. Once, when the Doctor suggested some-
thing for his relief, he pettishly but positively rejected
the suggestion; but, when the Doctor renewed it, his good
sense asserted its control; he apologized, and was as
submissive as an infant. Whenever the Doctor parted
with him, especially at night, he would receive the most
affectionate acknowledgments from him; generally with
the addition : *'God bless you, He does bless you, and He
will bless you!*' One day he told Dr. Parrish that his
poor John was worn down by fatigue and had been com-
pelled to go to bed. Another person then took John's
place, but he complained that, while this man was most
attentive to him, neither he nor the Doctor were like John,
who knew where to place his hand on anything in a large
quantity of baggage prepared for an European voyage.
40 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph's breathing became so bad in consequence of
obstructed expectoration that he requested the Doctor to
perform the operation of tracheotomy on him ; for he could
not live, he said, unless relieved. So eager, however, as
always, was his interest in all the concerns of life, that, at
this same interview, he had a newspaper brought to him,
looked it over, and, after pointing out to the Doctor a
part of it, headed "Cherokee,*' asked the Doctor to read
it. In reading, the Doctor pronounced the word * * omnipo-
tence" as if it were pronounced *'omni-/>o-tence.'*
Randoph checked him instantly, and pronounced the
word as Walker pronounced it; and, when the Doctor
attempted to defend himself, Randolph, without contra-
dicting him, simply said quickly: "Pass on." Continuing
his reading, the Doctor pronoimced the word "impe-
tus" as if its e were long. Again he was promptly cor-
rected, and, when he hesitated about accepting the
correction, he was told quickly as before: "There can be
no doubt about it." When the Doctor ended and re-
marked that there was a great deal of sublimity in the
composition, Randolph referred to the Mosaic account
of creation and reciting, "Let there be light and there
was light , ' ' observed : * * There is sublimity ! * '
Even now the hope of getting oflf for Europe still lin-
gered with him, and, when he found that he could not take
the packet at Philadelphia, he formed the resolution of
taking the packet at New York ; and, when he found that
his condition made even this impracticable, he decided
that he would go on to New England to see Andrew
Jackson, who was then in that portion of the United
States.
The morning of the day that Randolph died, Dr.
Parrish received an early and urgent message from him,
begging him to call to see him. When the Doctor reached
the sick room, there were several persons about Randolph;
but they all soon left except John. Dr. Parrish remarked
The End 41
to John that the latter had seen his master very low several
times before, and yet he had revived, and that, perhaps, he
would do so again; but Randolph interjected: "John
knows better than that. " The Doctor had not been long
in the room when Randolph looked at him fixedly and
announced. **I confirm every disposition in my will,
especially that respecting my slaves, whom I have manu-
mitted, and for whom I have made provision." Dr.
Parrish assured him that he was rejoiced to hear him
make such a statement, and soon afterwards, when he was
about to leave the apartment for the purpose of calling
on another patient, Randolph said in positive terms:
"You must not go; you cannot; you shall not leave me";
calling to John as he uttered these words to take care that
the Doctor did not leave the room. John obeyed by
locking the door and reporting to his master : * ' Master,
I have locked the door and got the key in my pocket.
The Doctor cannot go now. " So agitated was Randolph
by this incident that he even said to the Doctor : * * If you
do go, you need not return. " When the Doctor, however,
appealed to his better feelings, reminding him of the duty
that as a doctor he owed to another human being who
might need his assistance, Randolph's manner instantly
changed, and he said: "I retract that expression," and,
perhaps, a quarter of an hour afterwards, giving the
Doctor an expressive look, he again said : "I retract that
expression, " When the Doctor told him that he thought
that he understood clearly his purpose in regard to his
slaves, and took it for granted that the will would explain
the matter fully, he replied under the influence of an
hallucination :
*'No, you do not understand it — I know you don't. Our
laws are extremely particular on the subject of slaves. A will
may manumit them, but provision for their subsequent sup-
port requires that a declaration be made in the presence of a
42 John Randolph of Roanoke
white witness, and it is requisite that the witness, after hearing
the declaration, should continue with the party, and never lose
sight of him until he is gone or dead. You are a good witness
for John! You see the propriety and importance of your
remaining with me! Your patients must make allowances for
your situation."
Dr. Parrish, of course, knowing nothing of the laws of
Virginia, felt the force of such reasoning. Randolph
then said: ** John told me this morning, 'Master, you are
dying*;** and the Doctor made no attempt to keep the
truth from him. On the contrary, he assured Randolph
that he would be entirely candid with him, and informed
him that he had been rather surprised that he had
lasted so long. Thereupon, Randolph made his prepa-
rations to die; John, obeying his directions as if every-
thing had been thoroughly preconcerted between them.
The gold stud, which had belonged to his father, was, agree-
ably with his command, placed in his shirt bosom by John,
as we have mentioned in a previous chapter. At his re-
quest, a napkin was also placed upon his breast by John.
For a short time, he lay perfectly quiet with his eyes closed,
and Dr. Parrish thought that he was inclined to sleep;
but suddenly he roused himself and exclaimed: ** Remorse!
Remorse!'*, uttering the word the second time at the top
of his voice in a state of great excitement, and then crying
out: "Let me see the word.** Dr. Parrish thought it
prudent to remain wholly silent. Randolph continued:
**Get a dictionary — let me see the word." The Doctor
looked about him and told Randolph that he believed
th it there was none in the room. * 'Write it down then, "
commanded Randolph. "Let me see the word." The
Doctor picked up one of Randolph's cards from the table
with the words "Randolph of Roanoke" on it, and asked
whether he should write the word "Remorse" on that.
"Yes, nothing more proper, ** replied Randolph. At this,
The End 43
with his pencil, the Doctor wrote the word "Remorse" on
the card, and Randolph took it into his hands hurriedly,
and fastened his eyes on it with great intensity. * ' Remorse,
you have no idea what it is — you can form no idea of it
whatever; it has contributed to bring me to my present
situation ; but I have looked to the Lord Jesus Christ and
hope I have obtained pardon. " He then said : **Now let
John take the pencil and draw a line under the word";
which was accordingly done. The Doctor asked what
disposition was to be made of the card, and he replied :
' * Put it in yoiu" pocket and take care of it ; when I am
dead, look at it. "
Realizing that testimony, originating in circtunstances
so extraordinary as those which surrounded him, might
well be questioned, if Randolph's intentions in regard to
his slaves were ever brought into dispute. Doctor Parrish
suggested that some additional persons should be called
in to hear the same declaration that Randolph had made
to him, and to remain with Randolph until his death ; and,
when the Doctor proposed his son. Dr. Isaac Parrish, and
his young friend and late pupil, Dr. Francis West, as the
proper persons for the purpose, Randolph, as soon as he
found that West was a brother of his sea-captain friend,
exclaimed : * * Send for him, he is the man ; I will have him. "
Before the door was unlocked, so as to allow of the exit
of Dr. Parrish, Randolph pointed to a bureau, and asked
the Doctor to take his remuneration for his services from
it; but the Doctor objected, saying that he would feel as
though he were acting indelicately, were he to comply.
Without pressing the subject further, Randolph merely
remarked: '*In England, it is always customary. *'
Dr. Isaac Parrish and Dr. Francis West were sent for
and soon arrived. When they entered the room, Ran-
dolph was sitting in bed, propped up with pillows, and, as
he was very susceptible to cold, in his emaciated condition,
his head had been covered with a blanket in the form of a
44 John Randolph of Roanoke
hood, crowned with an old hat. After the witnesses had
been admitted, and he had shaken hands very cordially
with Dr. West, and inquired after his brother, Randolph
requested that Edmund Badger be sent for; and, as soon
as Badger had come, he asked the three doctors — Dr.
Joseph Parrish, Dr. Isaac Parrish, and Dr. Francis West —
to gather around his bed; which they did in a semi-circle.
Then he made the declaration that they were desired to
attest.
**His whole soul," says Dr. Joseph Parrish, "seemed con-
centrated in the act. His eyes flashed feeling and intelligence.
Pointing towards us with his long index finger, he addressed
us: *I confirm all the directions in my will respecting my
slaves, and direct them to be enforced; particularly in regard
to a provision for their support.' "
And at this point, raising his arm as high as he could, he
brought his open hand down on the shoulder of John, who
stood near him weeping ; saying as he did so : ** Especially
for this man. *' He then asked each of the doctors in turn
whether they understood him, shooting out his long,
historic forefinger at each as he made the inquiry, and
obtained from each an affirmative reply.
After the declaration had been made. Dr. Parrish
explained to Dr. Isaac Parrish and Dr. West the signifi-
cance of the ceremony as it had been explained to him by
Randolph, and appealed to Randolph to know whether
he had made a correct statement. "Yes,** replied Ran-
dolph, gracefully dismissing the group with a wave of his
hand, and adding: **The young gentlemen will remain
with me.**
**I took leave," Dr. Joseph Parrish tells us, **with the
assurance that I would return as speedily as possible and re-
main with him. After an absence of perhaps an hour or more,
and about 50 minutes before his death, I returned to his sick-
room. But now the scene was changed; his keen, penetrating
The End 45
eye had lost its expression; his powerful mind had given way,
and he appeared totally incapable of giving any correct direc-
tions relative to his worldly concerns."
Other infonnation about the last moments of Ran-
dolph's life has been given to us by Dr. Francis West and
Condy Raguet. In the course of the morning, his friends
William J. Barksdale, Henry A. Watkins, and John S.
Barbour called to see him. "They can do no harm or
good, " he said, **let them come up. "
For some time, after the witnesses had been called in,
his mind continued wholly clear; but then. began to give
way quite rapidly. He was very restless, and exhibited
considerable impatiencfe when his wishes were not speedily
gratified. One moment, he wovdd ask that the fire be re-
plenished, and, another, that fresh air be let into the apart-
ment. Once or twice, his eyes were cheated by illusions.
He attempted to scribble a letter to Judge Coalter, who,
he said, was living just over the way. The old sensual
visions, which he had seen the year before at Roanoke,
came back, and yet his innate sense of modesty once
manifested itself so strongly as to excite the attention of
Dr. Francis West. At times, he was so fearful of suffoca-
tion that he begged Dr. Francis West, as he had begged
Dr. Joseph Parrish, to perform the operation of trache-
otomy on him, and, when Dr. West declined to perform it,
even called for a knife with which to perform it himself.
**The old Doctor," he said, "was too timid to do it, and
so were the young ones." Finally, his desires could
hardly be apprehended, so indistinctly were they now
expressed either by word or gesture. His breathing
gradually became shorter; his knees, which had been
slightly elevated, as he sat in bed, fell to one side ; there
was a slight facial contortion, his spirit forsook its wasted
habitation, and its flight was so natural that it was difficult
to say just when it departed. Fifteen minutes to twelve
46 John Randolph of Roanoke
o'clock, midday, on Friday, May 24, 1833, is the moment
to which the event was referred by Dr. Joseph Parrish. (a) .
Shortly after Randolph attempted to write his letter
to Judge Coalter, he fumbled away at another note, and
handed it to Condy Raguet, who was also present when he
died, and asked him to send it to Chatham, Virginia. It
was addressed to his beloved niece, Mrs. John Randolph
Bryan, and her husband, and, so far as its wandering
thoughts are decipherable, it reads as follows:
** Dying. Home. . . . Randolph and Betty, my children,
adieu ! Get me to bed at Chatham or elsewhere, say Hugh
Mercer's or Minor's. To bed I conjure you all."
Even with Azrael darkening his doorway, he was still
travelling the long and arduous road between Washington
and Roanoke. '
After Randolph's death, his body was exposed to public
view at the City Hotel; and was inspected by a great
concourse of people; (6) and, on May 25, a public meeting
of the citizens of Philadelphia was convoked in the Court
Room of the United States District Court in that City for
the purpose of paying a tribute of respect to his memory.
The gathering was addressed by the celebrated lawyers,
Horace Binney and John Sergeant.* Appropriately
enough, the body, after being brought by water to Balti-
more, was conveyed to Norfolk in the steamboat, Pooh
hontas, and from Norfolk to Richmond in the steamboat,
* Deposition of Dr. Jos. Parrish, Littell's Living Age^ No. i8o, 153, Oct.
23, 1847; Depositions of Drs. Isaac Parrish and Francis West and Edmund
Badger in Co alter *s Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Cl'k's Office, Cir. Ct.,
Petersburg, Va.; Last Moments cf Mr. Randolph, by Condy Raguet in
Examiner and Journal of Political Economy^ Phila., 1834, v. i, 45-47;
Reminisce?: ces of the Last Moments of lion, J, R, of Roanoke, by Dr. Francis
West, copied by D. Grinnan.on Sept. 27, 1887, from original MS. in pos-
session of Dr. Philip Slaughter, of Culpeper Co., Va. (J. C. Grinnan MSS.);
Bryan MSS.
» U. S. Gazette, May 27, 1833; Poulson's Am. Daily Advertiser, May
29, 1833.
The End 47
Patrick Henry. It arrived in Richmond on May 28, and
the next day, after a funeral service, it was taken to Roa-
noke. Thirteen minute guns were fired when the fimeral
cortege commenced the journey from Richmond, and a
great mtiltitude of people followed it as far as the toll-gate
on Mayo's Bridge. " When the body arrived at Roanoke,
it was buried under a tall pine in a spot not more than one
himdred and fifty feet from the front door of one of the
two dwellings which constituted Randolph's home, and, in
accordance with his directions, his grave was marked only
by a rude stone from his plantation which he had selected
for the purpose.
In December, 1879, ^ ^^e vestiges of him that time
had spared were gathered up by John Randolph Bryan
and his son, Joseph Bryan, and interred in Hollywood
Cemetery in Richmond. * Two persons, who were present
at the disinterment, Dennis E. Morgan and Henry E.
Edmunds, had been present at the interment. So deep
was the grave, in which Randolph was buried, that, for a
time, after the work of exhimiation had been diligently
prosecuted, it looked as if the search for the body might
be a wholly disappointing one ; and, when it was discovered,
true to the local tradition which had always prevailed in
the neighborhood of Roanoke, it was found that Ran-
dolph had been interred, not with his face to the East,
as was customary, but to the West; so, it was said, that he
might still keep an eye, even after death, on Henry Clay.
In a letter to the author, ^ Mr. Briscoe B. Bouldin, one of
the persons present at the disinterment, tells him that,
when the interior of the coffin was exposed, the out-
lines of the figm*e could be plainly seen, though there
was only black dust to mark them. The hair, that irre-
pressible appendage of oiu* mortal being, seemed natural,
' Id., May 28, 1833, Richmond Whig, May 29, 1833.
'Richmond Dispatch, Dec. 12, 1879.
3 Jan. 2, 19*19.
48 John Randolph of Roanoke
Mr. Bouldin says. Another eye-witness told Mr. J. H.
Whitty, the well-known editor of Poe's poems, that the
root of a tree had penetrated the skull. ' Death had not
only stricken him down but had insultingly trampled
upon him. (a)
« Letter irom J. H. Whitty to the Author, Sept. 17, 1918.
CHAPTER III
The Randolph Will Litigation
After Randolph's death it was found that he had made
various dispositions of his property by will at different
times. One will was executed in 1 8 1 9 and placed in the cus-
tody of Dr. Brockenbrough ; it contained this declaration :
**I give my slaves their freedom to which my conscience
tells me they are justly entitled. It has a long time been a
matter of the deepest regret to me that the circumstances
imder which I inherited them, -and the obstacles thrown in the
way by the law of the land have prevented my emancipating
them in my lifetime, which it is my full intention to do, in case
I can accomplish it."
Then ensued provisions settling all the estate of the
testator, with certain exceptions,' upon William Leigh,
William Meade, and Francis Scott Key, in trust to use it
in colonizing the slaves of the testator on a body of land,
not in excess of four thousand acres, to be piu"chased by
them in some part of the United States; defraying the
expense of removing them ; and supplying them with cabins,
clothes, and utensils. '
Another will, without date, was executed in 1821, and
to this four codicils were subsequently added ; dated, Dec. 5,
1821, Jan. 31, 1826, May 6, 1828, and Aug. 26, 1831, respec-
tively. Still another will was executed in January, 1832.
By the will of 1821, Randolph made Wm. Leigh his
executor, and devised to him the part of his Roanoke
« Garland, v. 2, 150.
VOL. n— 4 49
50 John Randolph of Roanoke
estate which he called his Middle Quarter; bequeathing to
him at the same time all his household effects, live-stock,
tools, and the like. In the same will, he bequeathed free-
dom to all his slaves in the following terms : * * I give and
bequeath all my slaves their freedom, heartily regretting
that I have ever been the owner of one. '* Moreover, he
bequeathed to his executor a stun not in excess of $8,000,
or so much of such a sum as might be necessary, with
which "to transport and settle said slaves to and in some
other State or Territory of the United States, giving to all
above the age of 40 not less than 10 acres of land. " Pro-
vision was also made by the will for the sale of the re-
mainder of his Roanoke estate, and of his Bushy Forest
estate, in Charlotte County, and for the disposition of the
proceeds of sale by Francis Scott Key and the Rev. Wm.
Meade towards bettering the condition of the maniunitted
slaves of the testator (to use his words). In this will,
Randoph also expressed the hope that his **old and
faithful servants,** Essex and Essex's wife, Hetty, might
be suffered to remain in the State; and to each of them he
made an annual bequest of 33^ barrels of com, two hun-
dred-weight of pork, a pair of strong shoes, a suit of clothes,
and a blanket ; and to Essex besides an annual bequest of
a hat, 10 pounds of coffee, and 20 pounds of brown sugar;
and to his servants Nancy, the daughter of Hetty, Juba
(alias Jupiter), Queen, and Johnny, his body servant, the
same annual allowance as to Hetty.
By the codicil executed by Randolph in 1826, these
provisions were so modified as to place John, who was a
son of Essex, and Juba on the same footing as Essex and
John's wife, Betsy, and Juba*s wife, Celia, and Nancy, on
the same footing as Hetty; and, after making these
changes, Randolph said:
**And I humbly request the General Assembly (the only
request I ever preferred to them) to let the above named, and
The Randolph Will Litigation 51
such other of my old and faithful slaves as desire it, remain in
Virginia, recommending them each and all to the care of my
said executor, who I know is too wise, just, and humane to send
them to Liberia, or any other place in Africa, or the West
Indies."
There were some other special bequests contained in
the will of 1 82 1 , but they were all revoked by the codicil
of 1826, except a bequest to Theodore Dudley, which had
been previously revoked by the codicil of 1821. In
addition to revoking the bequest to Dr. Dudley, the
codicil of 1 82 1 atoned for the lack of a residuary clause in
the will of 1 82 1 by giving to the executor of the testator,
Wm. Leigh, all the lots and houses of the testator in
Farmville, and every other species of property whatever,
of which he might die possessed, save such property as
was disposed of in the will of 1821.
By the codicil of 1826, Randolph also specifically
devised to Wm. Leigh a tract of land in Charlotte County
which he had bought from the estate of Pleasant Lipscomb,
and a 53-acre tract of land in Halifax County, ** lying at
the deep gut on Staunton River," which he had bought
from William Sims Daniel. Both tracts had been pur-
chased since the execution of the will in 1821 ; and, by the
codicil of 1826, Randolph also devised to Wm. Leigh an
175-acre tract of land in Halifax County, which he had
likewise bought from William Sims Daniel, to be held by
him during his life, and, at his decease, to pass to such one
of Leigh's children as he should make by his will the
devisee of the 53-acre Daniel tract. By the same codicil,
Randolph devised to Thomas H. Benton all that part,
consisting of about 600 acres, of the Bushy Forest tract
that he had set apart for the benefit of his slaves in the
will of 1 82 1, which lay on the S. E. side of the Little
Roanoke ; and, at the same time, he bequeathed to Benton
his large pistols made by Woydon and Burton. In the
same codicil, the subjects of such bequests in the will of
52 John Randolph of Roanoke
1 82 1 as were revoked by it he bequeathed to his executor
as a fund to be used at his discretion for the benefit of the
testator's slaves; the surplus, if any, to belong to him.
The codicil of 1826 also made various specific bequests to
some of Randolph's friends, which modified to a limited
extent the general residuary dispositions which he had
made in favor of Wm. Leigh.
By the codicil of 1828, Randolph revoked all testamen-
tary dispositions, if any, made by him after the execution
of the will of 1 82 1 , whether made by will or codicil ; but an
**N. B." to the instrument contained a clause of specific
devise saving to Wm. Leigh the Pleasant Lipscomb and
the two Daniel tracts, and all the property of every
description which the testator had acquired since the date
of the will of 1 82 1 . Curiously enough, another addendum
to this codicil referred to his Ferry Quarter, which had by
the will of 1 82 1 been directed to be sold for the improve-
ment of the condition of his maniunitted slaves, as having
been made subject by that will to the refusal of Wm.
Leigh at a price, he said, which he then thought very
moderate, but which a change in the times had rendered
too high to answer his friendly intentions towards his
executor in giving him the refusal ; so he modified the will
of 182 1 , he declared, so far, but so far only, as to reduce to
the extent of 50% the price at which Leigh might take all
the land above the Ferry Road that Randolph had in-
herited from his father, and all that he had bought from
John Daniel, Tom. Beasley, Charles Beasley, and others
of that name and family. Such a misapprehension of the
terms of his own will was, of coiu"se, well calculated to
give color to the idea that Randolph was in an irresponsible
condition of mind when he made this codicil.
By the codicil of 1831, executed in London, Randolph
devised to his niece his Lower Quarter and some additional
land; and to his brother, Henry St. George Tucker, his
Bushy Forest estate, on both sides of the Little Roanoke,
The Randolph Will Litigation 53
and all his interest in the estate of Mrs. Martha Corran,
the widow of his Uncle Col. Theodorick Bland, and in his
lots and houses in Farmville. By this codicil, he also
bequeathed his plate and library to his niece. The
codicil likewise stated that the testator had upwards of
2,000 pounds sterling in the hands of Baring Bros. & Co.
of London, and upwards of i,ooo pounds sterling in the
hands of Gowan & Marx, and that this money he left to
his executor, Wm. Leigh, as a fund for carrying into
execution the provisions of his will relating to his slaves.
It also contained this provision :
"And, in addition to the provision which I have made for
my faithful servant John, sometimes called John White, I
charge my whole estate with an annuity to him during his life
of $50.00, and, as the only favor, that I ever asked of any
Government, I do entreat the Assembly of Virginia to permit
the said John and his family to remain in Virginia; and I do
earnestly recommend him and them to my executor aforesaid,
and to my dear brother and niece aforesaid.'*
The reader cannot fail to have noted, we are sure, the
persistency with which Randolph's wish to free his slaves
and to provide for their support continued from the date
of his will in 1 8 19 to the date of his last codicil in 1831 — a
period of some 12 years.
After his return from Russia, however, madness worked
a complete reversal for a time in the current of his feel-
ings in this respect. In January, 1832, he endeavored to
execute another will revoking all former testamentary
dispositions made by him, appointing Wm. Leigh and his
brother, Henry St. George Tucker, his executors, and
requiring them to sell all of his slaves and other personal
or perishable property, with certain exceptions, including
100 of his slaves, to be selected by his executors, and to
invest the proceeds in stock of the bank of the United
States ; and, in default of there being no such bank (which
54 John Randolph of Roanoke
might God grant for the safety of their liberties), in the
English 3% consols; and, in case of there being no such
stocks (which also might God grant for the safety of old
England), then in the United States 3% stock; or, in
defect of such stock, in mortgages on land in England.
By this paper, Randolph ftirther bequeathed to Wm.
Leigh and Henry St. George Tucker so much of the sum
of $20,000, which he then had in the bank of Virginia, as
might remain after payment had been made for certain
land just purchased by him from Elisha E. Hundley;
and upon his Bushy Forest estate, which he directed in
the will to be sold and made chargeable with such
debts and legacies as thereafter he might see fit to
give when he should have more leisure to make his will,
he charged a legacy of $5,000 in favor of John Randolph
Leigh, the youngest son of Wm. Leigh. By this will, he
likewise bequeathed to Dr. Brockenbrough, John Wick-
ham, Nathaniel Macon, Henry St. George Tucker, and
Wm. Leigh certain specific articles even more valuable
from the pretium affectionis that attached to them than
because of their intrinsic worth. And the residue of his
estate of every kind he gave to John C. Bryan, the only
son of his niece, during his life, with remainder to his
eldest son in fee simple; and, in defect of such issue, then
to the son of Henry St. George Tucker, called John Ran-
dolph after the testator, during his life, with remainder
to his eldest son; and, in defect of such issue, then to
Tudor Tucker, the brother of John Randolph Tucker,
during his natural life, with remainder to his eldest son.
At the July term of the General Cotut of Virginia, in
the year 1834, John Coalter, as the next friend of John
Coalter Bryan, the residuary legatee under the will of 1832,
presented that will to the court for probate. The applica-
tion was opposed by Rev. Wm. Meade, as trustee for the
slaves under the will of 1821, and by Frederick Hobson,
as the Committee of John St. George Randolph, John
The Randolph Will Litigation 55
Randolph's insane nephew; on the ground that John
Randolph was insane at the time of the execution of the
paper. During the progress of the trial, Wm. Leigh,
having, with a degree of unselfishness such as has rarely
ennobled human conduct, released all his interest under
the will of 1 82 1 and the codicils thereto, so as to qualify
himself as a witness for the purpose of upholding the still
richer gift of liberty that Randolph had bequeathed to his
slaves, was examined as a witness by Meade; and, his
testimony being reduced to writing, was made a part of
the record of the coiu"t. The General Court admitted the
will to probate, but, on appeal to the Court of Appeals of
Virginia, this judgment was reversed, and the will of 1 832
was declared to be null and void.
After this decision of the Cotirt of Appeals of Virginia,
Wm. Meade presented to the General Coiurt at its July
term in 1836 for probate the will of 1821 and its four
codicils. The application was opposed by Hobson, as the
Committee of John St. George Randolph, who claimed
that all fotir of these testamentary papers were invalid;
and by Henry St. George Tucker and John Randolph
Bry-an and his wife, so far as the will of 1821 and its first
three codicils were concerned ; but by these last defendants,
it was claimed that its foiurth codicil (that of 1831) was
maintainable as an independent testamentary paper.
The grounds on which Hobson, as Committee, impugned
the validity of the will of 1821 and all of its four codicils,
and on which the other defendants impugned the validity
of the will of 1 82 1 and its first three codicils, were that the
testator was insane at the time of the execution of the
several papers, and that, besides, the will of 182 1 had been
cancelled. On this trial, by consent of the parties, the
testimony taken on the application to admit to probate
the will of 1832, including that of Wm. Leigh, was used,
and the General Court reached the conclusion that John
Randolph was sane when he executed the testamentary
56 John Randolph of Roanoke
papers offered for probate, and that he was insane when he
cancelled the will of 1821. The Court, accordingly, en-
tered up a judgment admitting the will of 1821 and its
four codicils to probate, and, upon appeal to the Coiut of
Appeals, this judgment was affirmed.
Thereupon, Wm. Leigh, the executor, named in the will
of 1 82 1 , qualified as such in the General Court in Decem-
ber, 1837, and settled two administration accoimts before
a Commissioner of the Coiu"t, by which a large amount of
assets was shown to be in his hands ready for distribution.
Immediately after the qualification of Wm. Leigh as
executor, Nathaniel Beverley Tucker, Randolph's brother,
and St. George T. Coalter, his nephew, filed a Bill in Chan-
cery in the Circuit Superior Court for the County of James
City, in the City of Williamsburg, against Wm. Leigh, as
executor, and Francis Scott Key and Wm. Meade, as
trustees for the emancipated slaves and the plaintiff's
coheirs and co-distributees, John St. George Randolph,
Henry St. George Tucker, and John Randolph Bryan and
wife, praying, among other things, that Wm. Leigh, as
executor, might be enjoined from carrying into effect any
of the provisions of the will of 1821 and its foiu" codicils;
(all of which, the bill alleged, were invalid because of the
lack of mental capacity in the testator) in relation to the
slaves, and from removing them out of the Commonwealth.
This case went off on technical grounds.
In 1840, St. George Tucker Coalter having died, leaving
a widow and five infant children, Corbin Braxton, as his
executor and the next friend of his infant children, and the
widow filed their Bill in the same coiurt in the City of
Williamsburg, asking that the validity of the will of 182 1
and its four codicils might be passed upon by a jury. An
answer to the Bill was filed by Wm. Leigh, as executor,
and later the case was removed to the Circuit Superior
Coiu"t of Law and Chancery of the Town of Petersburg.
Subsequently, Nathaniel Beverley Tucker, by agreement
The Randolph Will Litigation 57
of the parties, became a plaintiff in the case, and, with the
original plaintiffs, filed an amended Bill in it, renewing
substantially the same objections to the papers that had
been made to them in the beginning of the controversy.
After some preliminary sparring on a formal point, which
did not stop short of the Court of Appeals of Virginia, the
case was submitted to a jury, which, on Feb. ii, 1845,
found that the will of 182 1 and its codicil of Dec. 5, 1821,
were * * the only true last will and testament of John Ran-
dolph. " It would seem, however, from a petition for a
fee for his services in the case, which was filed by H. L.
Brooke, one of the coimsel for Hobson, the Committee of
St. George Randolph in the case, in another case, that this
verdict was entered up as the result of a compromise
between the parties, which the petition says: ** while it
gave the slaves their freedom and $30,000, secured to St.
George Randolph's estate a property valued at more than
$50,000." Thus ended the celebrated Randolph will
Utigation in which Walter Jones and Chapman Johnson,
two of the most famous lawyers in the history of Virginia,
and other eminent lawyers were at one time or another
engaged. '
For some reason, the decisions of the Court of Appeals
in the two probate proceedings, which were instituted
before the General Court, were not reported along with the
reports of other cases decided by the Court of Appeals of
Virginia; and all the records of the General Court itself
were imfortunately destroyed by the great fire which
befell Richmond at the close of the Civil War. It would
seem, too, that, in some unaccountable manner, all the
papers in the case in the Superior Court of Law and
Chancery for the Town of Petersburg, in which Wm.
'Randolph's Exor. vs. Tucker, 37 Va. (10 Leigh) 655; Coalter's Exor.
w. Bryan, 42 Va. (i Grattan) 18; Randolph's Admr. vs. Hobson, Va. State
Libr., p. 138; Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clerk's Office, Cir. Ct.,
Petersbuig, Va.
58 John Randolph of Roanoke
Leigh, as executor of John Randolph, settled up and dis-
tributed his estate, have become mislaid or lost.
Even if the jury did nothing more than register the
result of the compromise arrived at by the parties in the
case, the fact remains that the members of the Court of
Appeals of Virginia not only declared the will of 1832, by
which Randolph directed his slaves to be sold, to be
invalid, but declared the will of 1821, by which he gave
freedom to them all, to be valid. We are also told by
Dr. James Waddell Alexander that, while the will litigation
was pending, everybody in Charlotte County considered
it highly inequitable that Randolph's slaves should be
kept from the benefits intended by their master. ' More-
over, the human sense of duty has rarely found finer
expression than it did in the utterances of the Rev. Wm.
Meade and Judge Wm. Leigh in regard to the moral
obligations imposed upon them by the testamentary dis-
positions of John Randolph. Writing to John Randolph
Clay a few months after the death of Randolph, Judge
Leigh said :
"I am named an executor in all his testamentary papers,
and in all a legatee; but in the last not to any great amount.
He left his affairs in such a situation that I had the temptation
of a great estate to draw me into litigation with his relations;
but, thank God, I have been able to resist it.^
*'This defendant," Judge Leigh averred in his separate an-
swer to the bill in the Petersburg case, **is defending the right
to freedom of between 300 and 400 human beings and their
descendants forever, who he most conscientiously believes are
justly and legally entitled to their freedom."^
Not less resonant are the words used by the Rev. Wm.
Meade, who by the way was the author of one of the
» Charlotte C. H., Va., Oct. 19, 1838, 40 Yrs. Familiar Letters, p. 270.
* Halifax, Nov. 22, 1833, J. R. Clay Papers, Libr. Cong.
» Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Cl'k's Oflfice, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
The Randolph Will Litigation 59
fairest summaries of the weakness and strength of slave
institutions, of which we have any knowledge, ' in his
separate answer, as one of the trustees for Randolph's
slaves, to the same bill :
**This respondent . . . being himself clear of all interest
in this case but the sacred trust which has devolved on him in
a capacity purely fiduciary of asserting the liberty and rights of
very many and very helpless fellow creatures committed to his
guardianship and protection by what he verily in his con-
science believes to be the true and genuine last will and testa-
ment, the judicially established last will and testament, of a
deceased friend; who, in that instrument, in so far as it con-
cerns those fellow creatures, expressed intents which, equally
in his dying hour as for many of the latter and most rational
years of his life, interested his heart and his conscience far
above all other of his earthly concerns; a solemn duty calls
this respondent, tmder these circumstances, to protest, as he
does now protest, as well for himself as for and in behalf of his
co-defendant and co-trustee, F. S. Key, and of the said emanci-
pated negroes, against further procedure in this cause before
this court and the now judge thereof.'**
In the light of such facts as these, what language can
we find strong enough to fitly condemn the shallow
bigotry, the benighted ignorance that did not, or would
not, or could not, know the whole truth about human
slavery in Virginia, and impelled Henry Adams in his
John Raridolph to say sneeringly that it was difficult to
understand how the jury could possibly have held the will
of 1 82 1, which emancipated Randolph's slaves, to be a
saner document than that of 1832 which did not?^
In 1833, the people of Virginia were not entirely ripe,
though ripening fast, as the great debate over slavery in
' Old Familiei and Churches of 7fl., v. i, 90 (note) (Phila., 191 o).
* Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Cl'k's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
* P. 305-
6o John Randolph of Roanoke
the Virginia Assembly of 1832 showed, for the voluntary
adoption of the system of gradual but tmiversal emanci-
pation, which, at this day, at any rate, it is reasonable to
believe, would, in the ordinary course of human events,
after the usual stages of agitation and reaction through
which every great political issue passes in a democratic
community, have been adopted by them, without the loss of
a life on the battlefield, if only the question of freedom for
the negro could have been kept entirely exempt from
external complications; which, of course, under the cir-
cumstances was impossible; but, in 1833, public sentiment
in Virginia against the institution of slavery was suffi-
ciently pronounced to allow neither judge nor jury any
pretext for thwarting the desire of a testator to confer the
boon of liberty upon his slaves. Be this as it may, there
was little disposition at that time on the part of some of
the very free States, which were busily assailing the
character and motives of Virginia, and kindling the spark
of servile insurrection in her bosom, to second her in her
efforts to rid herself of the cancer that Randolph told
her sharply stood out from her very face.
Speaking of the efforts of Judge Leigh in 1846 to find
a home for Randolph's emancipated slaves on 3200 acres
of land, which he had purchased for them in Mercer
County, Ohio, Henry Howe says:
*' These arrived in the summer of 1846 to the number of
about 400, but were forcibly prevented from making a settle-
ment by a portion of the inhabitants of the County. Since
then, acts of hostility have been commenced against the people
of this settlement ; and threats of greater held out if they do not
abandon their lands and homes."'
» Hist. Collections of Ohio, v. 2, p. 505.
CHAPTER IV
Randolph as a Parliamentaiy Orator
In his John Randolph, Henry Adams says of Randolph :
"Neither his oratory nor his. wit would have been tolerated
in a Northern State."' This conception had its origin
simply in the womb of prejudice. Indeed, we doubt
whether any real assent accompanied it in the mind of
Henry Adams, superficial as his knowledge of Randolph
was at the time at which it was expressed. There was too
much general education and literary culture in the North-
ern States, especially the New England States, for such
gifts as those of Randolph not to be highly appreciated
by their inhabitants. In point of fact, some of the most
impressive testimony to his intellectual powers that has
come down to us is that of Northern men. Speaking in
his journal, tmder date of May i6, 1826, of a stage journey
from Richmond to the Potomac which he had just taken
in company with Randolph, Jared Sparks, of Massachu-
setts, certainly no mean authority, says :
**That strange, eccentric being, John Randolph was in com-
pany. He talked all day; his memory is prodigious, he
touched upon all subjects — ^literature, politics, theology,
history with quotations innumerable from the Latin and
English classics. His mind is a storehouse filled to overflow-
ing. He was in good humor and high spirits nearly all day,
and, as there was but one gentleman besides myself in the
stage, his conversation was carried on almost entirely with me.
' P. 255.
61
62 John Randolph of Roanoke
My task was not a hard one, however, as he talked incessantly;
and, indeed, if his conversation were printed, it would be quite
as entertaining, profound, and versatile as his speeches during
the present session in the Senate."'
S. G. Goodrich, of Connecticut, better known under his
nom de plume of Peter Parley, pronounces Randolph in his
widely read Memoirs to have been undoubtedly a man of
genius. * He also says that Randolph ** sometimes seemed
almost inspired."^ The unfailingly readable James Par-
ton, of Massachusetts, also pronounces Randolph to have
been a man of genius. ^ Apd so does George Ticknor
Curtis, of Massachusetts, the biographer of Daniel
Webster, (a) ^
"I had two opportunities of listening to Mr. Randolph in
the Senate," Josiah Quincy the younger, of Massachusetts,
informs us in his delightful Figures of the Past, **and was com-
pletely fascinated by his extraordinary gifts as a talker; for it
was not oratory (though at times he would produce great
oratorical effects) so much as elevated conversation that he
poured forth. "^
On Jan. 8, 1820, Edward Dowse, a member of Congress
from Masachusetts, wrote to his wife: **I wish you could
be present sometimes and hear John Randolph's wit. It
is the most delicate and at the same time keenest. "^ And,
if it is not too much like seething a kid in its mother's or
its great-grandmother's milk, we might also record what
Henry Adams' great-grandfather, John Adams, we need
not add *'of Massachusetts, " had to say about Randolph's
wit and eloquence in his rjsview of a pamphlet published
' Life cf Writings of Jared Sparks, by Herbert B. Adams, v. i, 459.
' Recoil eCiions of a Lifetime, 774 (note).
3 lUd.
^ Famous Americans of Recent Times, 181.
^Life of Daniel Webster, by Geo. T. Curtis, v. i, 146.
*P. 219.
T Life of Quincy, 387.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 63
in 1808 by James HiUhouse, a member of the United
States Senate from Connecticut :
** Mr. John Randolph inherited his name, family connections,
his fine plantations and thousand negroes, which have given
him more power in this cotmtry than the Duke of Bedford has
in England, and more than he would have, if he possessed all
the brilliant wit, fine imagination and flowing eloquence of that
celebrated Virginian."'
Among Randolph's warmest admirers, was no less an
arbiter of wit and eloquence than our American Addison,
Washington Irving, of New York. A copy, which he had
taken of the portrait of Randolph, painted by J. W. Jarvis,
hangs upon the walls of the New York Historical Society
today. Another admirer of Randolph was Harmanus
Bleecker, of Albany, who served in Congress with him ; and
to his generosity the State of Virginia is indebted
for a portrait of Randolph which is now in its
Library at Richmond. Whoever saw a school reader
or an anthology of American eloquence, compiled
by a Northern hand, and published by a Northern pub-
Ushing house that did not contain selections from Ran-
dolph's most famous speeches, along with selections from
the most renowned orations of Webster or Edward
Everett? (a) And who was it but the **good gray poat"
of New England, John Greenleaf Whittier, who wrote the
stirring lines on Randolph so full of tender reverence for
his genius, including his mirth, ** sparkling like a diamond
shower,** which Dr. Charles W. Eliot, one of the living
exemplars of all that is best in the New England intellect
and character, has inserted in the Harvard Classics? The
truth of the case is well summarized by Thos. H. Benton,'
** Wit and genius all allowed him.** But why waste ink in
refutation of malice so alien to the truth that it might be
« The Liftf &c., of John Adams, Ed. by Chas. F. Adams, v. 6, $2^,
'JO Yts. View, V. i, 473,
64 John Randolph of Roanoke
dismissed as puerility, if hatred of Randolph were not
one of the heirlooms of the Adams family, as well as other
much nobler things. If we except some intervals during
his term of service in the United States Senate, when his
mind was unquestionably unhinged, it may well be
doubted whether any American orator ever commanded
the undivided attention of his listeners more completely
than Randolph ; and, when we assert this, we do not forget
that once, when describing the transport excited by the
eloquence of Henry, he, himself, said that, when Henry
was speaking, one felt like whispering to his neighbor,
* * Hush ! don't stir, don't speak, don't breathe " ; ' nor do we
forget Webster * * whose look, " if we may follow in the foot-
steps of Milton and Rufus Choate,
** Drew audience still as night
Or summer's noon-tide air."
Mixed with the intentness with which Randolph was
heard was of course the curiosity which was concerned
rather with his plantation background and the singular-
ities of his physical appearance, dress, and manner than
with his rhetorical talents ; but curiosity of this sort, after
all, can account for but a few minutes of arrested attention ;
not for the hours during which Randolph's auditors not
infrequently surrendered themselves completely to the
enchanting flow of his fresh and sparkHng elocution. **He
was listened to with undivided attention, " we are told by
Sawyer, who was one of his Congressional associates for
many years. ^
**It is unquestionably his praise," declares Hugh Blair
Grigsby, who sat with him in the Virginia Constitutional
Convention of 1829-30, "that above all his contemporaries, he
was successful in fixing the attention of his audience of every
class and degree throughout his longest speeches."^
» Nathan Loughborough MSS. ' P. 123.
i The Va, Convention of i82g-jo, by Grigsby, 45.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 65
"There is no speaker in either House that excites such
universal attention as Jack Randolph, ' * Washington Irving
wrote to William Irving on one occasion.* **He drew an
attentive audience together in Congress more certainly
than any other speaker, * * was the statement of the National
Partraii Gallery. ^
"His genius and oratorical powers, language, voice and
gesture cause him to be listened to as perhaps no other
man was ever listened to in Congress, *' is the testimony of
George R. Gilmer, a member of Congress, in a letter to his
wife written in 1822.^ "He attracted a crowded gallery, **
says James Buchanan, who was in the House for a time with
him, * * when it was known he would address the House, and
always commanded the undivided attention of his whole
audience."*
"When he began to speak," wrote Phoebe Morris from
Washington to her father, Anthony Morris, of Philadelphia,
in 1 81 2, **what a silence reigned throughout the House!
Everyone appeared to wait in anxious, almost breathless,
expectation as if to catch the first sound of his voice, and what
a voice! Clear, melodious, and penetrating, it fascinates."^
Most striking of all perhaps is what Horace Binney, the
celebrated advocate, had to say on the subject at the
memorial meeting in honor of Randolph held in Philadel-
phia immediately after his death :
"He has probably spoken to more listeners than any other
man of his day; having been unrivalled in the power of riveting
the attention by the force and pungency of his language, the
facility and beauty of his enunciation, and the point and
emphasis of his most striking manner."^ (a)
« Feb. 20, 181 1, Life, &c., of W. /., by P. M. Irving, v. i, 273.
"V.4,9.
J Wm, 6r Mary College Quarterly, v. 17, 142 (note).
*Life of J as. Buchanan, by Geo. T. Curtis, v. i, 29.
i Social Life in the Early Republic, by Anne H. Wharton, 152.
• Poulson's Amer, Daily Advertiser, May 29, 1833.
VOL. u — 5
66 John Randolph of Roanoke
Some of these statements are blended with a certain
amount of disparagement of Randolph in one respect or
another. But, whatever may be the justice of this dis-
paragement, they certainly substantiate what we have
said about the extent to which he held the ear of his
auditors, whether Northern, or Southern, in bondage.
The physical characteristics of no American orator of
Randolph's day are better known to us than his. At
least five different original portraits of him are in existence.
One by Gilbert Stuart, now in the possession of the Cor-
coran Art Gallery at Washington, was taken in March,
1804, when Randolph was in his 31st year.' It is the
portrait of a boy, rather than of a man, but in this respect
it is true to the original at that age, and the poetic, sculp-
tured face which stands out from it is as handsome and as
unmistakably indicative of genius as the face of Byron
or Bums. After scanning it, we can readily believe the
statement of Littleton Waller Tazewell that, when Ran-
dolph was his schoolmate at Williamsburg, he was the
most beautiful boy he had ever beheld. * Another portrait
of Randolph was taken by J. W. Jarvis in 181 1, and, in a
letter to Henry Brevoort, written from Philadelphia,
Washington Irving says that Randolph had consented
that he should have a copy of it.^ About two weeks later,
Irving wrote from Washington to Brevoort a letter in
which he made these lively comments on Jarvis :
"I have seen nobody on my route but the elegant Jarvis,
whom I found sleeping on a sopha-bed in his painting room like
a sleeping Venus, and his beautiful dog couched at his feet. I
aroused the varlet, and bid him on pain of death to have the
likeness of Randolph done on my return; he breakfasted with
us and entertained us with several jokes which had passed the
ordeal of Baltimore dinner tables."^
' J. R.'s Diary. ^ Discourse on Tazewell, by Grigsby, 131.
3 March 16, 181 1, Life^ &c., of W. /., by P. M. Irving, v. i, 275.
< Apr. 2, 1 81 1, Id., V. I, 276.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 67
Jarvis' portrait, or a copy of Jarvis* portrait, of Ran-
dolph has descended to Mrs. Admiral Edward Simpson,
of Washington, from Randolph's friend, Charles Sterett
Ridgely, her ancestor, and a portrait is owned by Harold
Randolph, of Baltimore, a son of the poet Innes Randolph,
which closely resembles that portrait, or copy. Another
portrait of Randolph was taken by J. Wood in 1816, and
was given by Randolph to Francis Scott Key. In a letter
to Key, written from Senmies* hotel at Georgetown,
whither he had gone partly for the purpose of seeing Key,
and partly for the purpose of giving Wood his last sitting,
Randolph said :
** I wished to give Wood an opportunity to finish the picture.
I called last evening, but he was gone to Mt. Vernon. I shall
drive by his apartment and give him the last sitting this
morning. It is a soothing reflection to me that your children,
long after I am dead and gone, may look upon their sometime
father's friend, of whose features they will have perhaps
retained some faint recollection. Let; me remind you that,
although I am childless, I cannot forego my claim to the
return picture on which I set a very high value."'
Randolph did receive the return picture ; for, some two
years later, he wrote to Key, * * Wood has again failed but
not so entirely as at first. It is you in some of your
humors, but neither your serious nor more cheerful face.
It shall hang, however, near my bed and I hope will prove
a be nefit as well as a pleasure to me. ' ' * That is, he hoped,
that the image of such a heavenly-minded man as Key by
his bedside would help him in the struggle which once
caused him, in familiar converse with a friend, to strike his
own breast and to exclaim: **This rebel is in constant
revolt."^ The Wood portrait of Randolph, it is said, is
» May 7, 1 816, Garland, v. 2, 86.
> April 29, 1 81 8, Garland, v. 2, 96
i Nathan Loughborough MSS.
68 John Randolph of Roanoke
now, or was recently, in the possession ef some resident
of Philadelphia, but we have been unable to trace it to its
owner. Another portrait of Randolph is the one donated
by Harmanus Bleecker to the State of Virginia. By
whom this portrait was executed does not seem to be
known. It was apparently from it that the charming
likeness of Randolph which appears in Powhatan Bouldin's
Home Reminiscences was engraved. There is still another
portrait of Randolph by Chester Harding — ^which now
hangs in the Corcoran Art Gallery at Washington. "He
sat to me for three different pictures," Harding says in
his My Egotistigraphy. ' In one of his letters to the Rev.
John Hall, the Rev. James Waddell Alexander states that
* * the lithograph of Childs from a painting by Harding is
said to give the best idea of Randolph. "^ A portrait of
Randolph owned by the late Judge William Leigh, of
Danville, Va., closely resembles the Harding portrait in
the Corcoran Art Gallery. Numerous other pictorial
representations of Randolph are extant, including several
highly artistic silhouettes; and quite an assortment of
crude caricatures. A curious engraving of what would
appear to have been another portrait of Randolph taken
when he was quite young is in the possession of Mr. John
Stewart Bryan, of Richmond. A letter from Randolph to
Theodore Dudley discloses the fact that he had at the date
of the letter some sort of a picture of himself taken for his
friend, Joseph Clay, of Philadelphia. ^ There is, also, a fine,
full length silhouette inscribed : * * Original by Brown from
Life, John Randolph of Roanoke on his embarkation for
Russia on board ship Concord.*' This silhouette also
belongs to Mr. Bryan. Still another fine, full length sil-
houette projects Randolph's tall, lank figure appropriately
enough on a backgroimd consisting of a worm-fence pas-
' P. 145.
» 40 Yrs. Familiar Letters ^y. i , 270.
»Oct. 13, 181 1, Letters to a Y. R., 109.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 69
ttire and high-bred horses. This has been published in the
brochure entitled, Wax Models and Silhouettes, published
by the Society of the Colonial Dames of Massachusetts.
Harpers Magazine states that the sketch of Randolph
with cap and cape, which was reproduced in the second
volume of Garland's Life of Randolph, was copied from a
portrait taken during Randolph's last visit to England and
was said to present a by no means overdrawn repre-
sentation of his appearance when on the stjeet. ' This we
can readily believe after reading what F. W. Thomas
has to say about Randolph in his John Randolph of
Roanoke and Other Sketches of Character,^
"One day as I was standing in Market (now Baltimore)
Street, I remarked a tall, thin, unique-looking being hurrying
towards me with a quick, impatient step, evidently much
annoyed by a crowd of boys who were following close at his
heels. Not in the obstreperous mirth with which they would
have followed a crazy or drunken man or an organ-grinder
and his monkey, but in the silent, curious wonder with which
they would have haunted a Chinese bedecked in full costtime.
I instantly knew the individual to be Randolph from the
descriptions. I, therefore, advanced towards him that I might
take a full observation of his person without violating the rules
of courtesy in stopping to gaze at him. As he approached,
he occasionally turned towards the boys with an angry glance
but without saying anything, and then hurried on as if to
outstrip them; but it would not do. They followed close
behind the orator, each one observing him so intently that he
said nothing to his companions.'*
The different caricatures of Randolph, which have been
brought to our attention, are too rudimentary in point of
conception and execution to merit attention in detail.
The American cartoonists of Randolph's day knew little
more about drawing than the ruder cavemen. In a letter
» v. 2, 80 (note).
-P. 13.
70 John Randolph of Roanoke
to Timothy Pickering, Randolph refers to a miniature of
himself taken by Wood in 1809.' Perhaps, this was the
miniature which Theodore Dudley, when a medical stu-
dent in Philadelphia in 18 12, lent, at the request of Dr.
Chapman of that City, to the Portfolio, in order that it
might be engraved for the pages of that publication. The
engraving was to be followed in a succeeding number by a
biographical sketch of Randolph, but this expectation was
defeated by Randolph's disinclination to supply the
requisite materials. And even as to the miniature he
wrote to Dudley : * * I really regret that you lent the min-
iature for the purpose of having it so wretchedly en-
graved. '** A miniature of Randolph is owned by Harold
Randolph, of Baltimore ; whether it is the Wood miniature
or not we cannot say ; nor do we know what has become of
the model of Randolph's face which was taken the day
after his decease by Gerelot.^
The celebrity of Randolph may be roughly measured by
the extraordinary degree to which he has been pictured in
one form or another. In the A. L. A. Portrait Index of the
Library of Congress will be found a long list of references
to portraits and engravings of him. ^ And what the brush
of the limner has omitted the pen of the contem-
porary writer has abundantly supplied; for Randolph's
countenance and figure have been described in the mi-
nutest detail — and in some instances most graphically —
by many persons who had eagerly scrutinized them. One
of these descriptions was composed only a year or so alter
Jefferson had written to his daughter, Mrs.Eppes, that John
Randolph had in the debate, in which he stigmatized our
regular soldiery as '*rag-a-muffins, " ** entered into debate
» Mrs. Norman James MSS.
^Letters to a Y. R., 121, 126, 130.
iDr. Francis West, Jt.'s, Reminiscences , dated May 24, 1833, copied by
D. Grinnan, Sept. 27, 1887, from original in possession of Dr. Philip Slaugh-
ter, of Culpeper Co., Va.
4 P. 1203
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 71
with great splendor and approbation.*'' While this de-
scription was penned in 1803, it was not published until
after Randolph's death in 1833. I^ first appeared in the
New York Courier ^ by which it is stated to have been written
by a gentleman who had been in habits of intimacy with
Randolph ever since it had been written, and it was
afterwards copied into the National Intelligencer,^
'*Mr. Randolph," says this writer, **is beyond comparison
the most singular and striking person that I ever met with.
As an orator, he is unquestionably the first in the country,
and yet there are few men who labor under so many physical
disadvantages. He seeems made up of contradictions.
Though his person is exceedingly tall, thin and disproportion-
ate, he is the most graceful man in the world; and, with an
almost feminine voice, he is more distinctly heard in the house
than either Mr. D. or Roger — ; though the former is more noisy
than a field preacher, and the latter more vociferous than a
crier of oysters. When seated on the opposite side of the Halls
of Congress, Mr. Randolph looks like a youth of 16, but, when
he rises to speak, there is an almost sublimity in the effect,
proceeding from the contrast in his height when seated or
standing. In the former, his shoulders are raised, his head
depressed, his body bent; in the latter, he is seen with his
figure dilated in the attitude of inspiration, his head raised,
his long, thin finger pointing, and his dark, clear chestnut eye
flashing lightning at the object of his overwhelming sarcasm."
'* Mr. Randolph," the paper continues, *' looks, acts and speaks
like no other man I have ever seen. He is original, unique in
ever>'thing. His style of oratory is emphatically his own.
Often diffusive and discursive in his subjects, his language is
simple, brief and direct, and, however he may seem to wander
from the point occasionally, he never fails to return to it
with a bound, illuminating it with flashes of wit, or the happiest
illustrations, drawn from a retentive memory and a rich
imagination. Though eccentric in his conduct in the ordinary
affairs of life and his intercourse with the world, there will be
* Jan. 17, 1800, Life, by Randall, v. 2, 534.
» June 4, 1833.
12 John Randolph of Roanoke
found more of what is called common sense in his speeches
than in those of any other man in Congress. His illustrations
are almost always drawn from familiar scenes, and no man is so
happy in allusions to fables, proverbs and the ordinary inci-
dents of human life, of which he has been a keen observer.
His is not that fungus species of eloquence which expands itself
into empty declamation, sacrificing strength, clearness and
perspicuity to the more popular charm of redundant meta-
phors and periods roimded with all the precision of the com-
pass. Mr. Randolph is a man of wit, and wit deals in
comparisons; yet his language is perfectly simple and less
figurative than that of any of our distinguished speakers. . . .
Though continually worried by the Httle terriers of the House
who seem to be sent there for no other purpose than to bark at
him, Mr. Randolph never becomes loud or boisterous, but
utters the most biting sarcasm with a manner the most ir-
ritatingly courteous and a voice that resembles the music of
the spheres. Such indeed is the wonderful clearness of his
voice and the perfection of his enunciation that his lowest
tones circulate like echoes through the hall of Congress, and
are more distinctly understood than the roarings of M. L.
[Matthew Lyon], the bellowings of R. N., or the bleatings of
the rosy and stentorian Robert Ross. In all the requisites of a
great orator, he has no superior, and, in the greatest of all,
that of attracting, charming, riveting the attention of his
hearers, no equal in this coimtry, or perhaps in the world.
... It is with regret, I add, that this brilliant man, who has
already attracted the attention not only of his coimtr3rmen but
of the world, will in all probability survive but a few years.
His health appears irretrievably lost, and his constitution
irreparably injured. A premature decay seems gradually
creeping upon all his vital powers, and an inevitable, tmseen
influence appears to be dragging him to the grave. At the age
of 30, with all the world in his grasp, wealth in his possession,
and glory and power in perspective, he is in constitution an
infirm old man, with light, glossy hair parted over his forehead,
and tied loosely behind with a black ribbon; teeth white as
ivory; an eye sparkling with intellect and a countenance
seamed with a thousand small wrinkles. At a distance of a
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 73
hundred yards, he will be mistaken for an overgrown boy
of premature growth; approach him and, at every step, his
appearance changes, and he becomes gradually metamor-
phosed into an old man. You will then see a face such as you
never saw before, never will see again; if he likes you, a smile,
such as you never beheld on the face of any other man, and,
when that smile passes away, a countenance bearing an
expression of long continued anxiety and suffering that will
make your heart ache."'
This well-written paper ends with these glowing words:
"When he [Randolph] departs this scene, in which he has
suffered the martyrdom of sickness and detraction combined,
if living; I will bear this testimony that he will not leave
behind any man that can claim superiority over him as a
glorious orator, a sagacious, high-minded, independent patriot
and inflexibly honest man.'*^
Lemuel Sawyer became a member of the House in 1807,
and his long association with Randolph in that body gives
what he has to say about Randolph's appearance and ora-
torical characteristics a peculiar value.
"His color," Sawyer says, "was somewhat tawny; he was
straight, and he walked like the Indian with one foot placed
on a straight line before the other. When he was seated at his
desk, he appeared rather below the middle size, but, when he
arose, he seemed to unjoint or unfold himself, and stood erect,
near six feet high ; his lower limbs being disproportionately long
for his body. His head was small, his hair light, and worn
long, and tied behind; his eyes were black and piercing, his
mouth handsome but with the arrangement of his teeth gave
him a puerile look; his chin rather pointed and smooth or
beardless; his hands small, and his fingers long and tapering.
His dress was that of the old Virginia gentleman. He wore
white top boots with drab or buckskin shortclothes, and
sometimes gaiters, and, though neat, he was generally plain
« Bouldin, 170. *Id„ 174.
74 John Randolph of Roanoke
in his appearance, and had no ambition to conform to any
prevalent fashion. ' * '
It would seem that the color of Randolph's eyes was
hazel as the writer in the New York Courier states, and not
black as Sawyer states, but, as we go on, it will be seen
that the testimony on this point is conflicting. As to
Sawyer's statement that Randolph, when erect, stood
near six feet high, it is enough to say that his exact height
was six feet and two inches and his width across the shoul-
ders thirteen inches. ' The observations of Sawyer on Ran-
dolph's eloquence are equally interesting:
'*In his latter years, he could not confine himself to the
point, but touched upon things in general as if in a tone of
conversational improvisation. He spoke so slow and deliber-
ately that I have thought in listening to him that he had not
considered the subject before he arose; but, as he proceeded,
his mind was put into motion, or rather commotion, and he
threw off the new coinage of his active brain as fast as it was
struck. He was greatly assisted and encouraged, and gen-
erally arrayed his countenance in a bland smile, if he could
discover among his audience anyone paying particular atten-
tion to his address. He would rivet his eye upon him, and
seem to address him alone; and I have seen members in that
case nod assent to his assertions as he proceeded, which he
appeared to take as a marked favor. During his speech on the
Judiciary bill, I believe in April, 1826, I happened to be a
listener and standing near the President of the Senate when
Mr. Randolph was denouncing the Executive for buying up the
leading prints in the different States. Among others, he
enumerated the Petersburg Intelligencer, and added one or
two others, and, looking steadily at me, asked was there not
the whole three that had given in their adhesion ? I was igno-
rant of the circumstance, and did not return the nod of assent,
which seemed to confuse Mr. Randolph, and, remarking that
he knew who he was talking to, dropped that part of his
'P. 44.
* Dr. Francis West, Jr,*s, Reminiscenses, supra.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 75
subject. In his earlier years, he was as remarkable for adher-
ing to the question before the House as other members, and,
when roused by opposition, seldom left it till it was com-
pletely exhausted. He was then animated, clear and distinct;
his delivery was forcible and his language pure, his words
select and strictly grammatical, and his order and arrange-
ment lucid and harmonious. His voice was clear, loud and
sonorous, and almost as fine as a female's, and, in his extem-
poraneous efforts, in which he excelled, his action was perfectly
suited to his expression. If he was treated with courtesy
and deference by his antagonists, he always retiuned it with
interest ; but, if they provoked him by the use of any person-
ality or unfairness in stating his arguments, he retaliated with
terrible retribution."'
In a later chapter of his book, Sawyer returns to the same
subject in these terms :
**He was possessed of a fine taste for literature, a general
reader, a 'ripe scholar,* particularly in the Department of Belles
Lettres; by which acquirements he was well supplied v/ith apt
illustrations to embellish and enrich his oratory. He levied
his contributions from the wide dominions of ancient and
modem literature with the undisputed authority of a con-
queror, which he stored away in his capacious memory as an
inexhaustible magazine to distribute with judicious discrimi-
nation upon every subject that arose in debate. Although in
the course of his long political career of more than 30 years, he
spoke volumes, and some of his speeches, towards the close of
it, were rather verbose and irrelevant, yet he never failed,
during some part of them, to arouse and astonish his audience
by some classical allusions, happy similes, 'some thoughts that
breathed and words that burned,' some beautiful and striking
metaphors and most mellifluous and harmonious periods.
Even now in reading those speeches (although so much is lost
in their delivery), while we may have to penetrate through a
heap of chaff (if anything of his may be so abused in terms) in
reaching the kernel or grain, we are abundantly rewarded in
' P. 43.
76 John Randolph of Roanoke
the richness, if not in the abundance, of the product. . . .
Although the mind might not be chained and carried captive
in the triumphant march of a gigantic intellect by the depth of
research and the force of reasoning, yet was it fascinated, won
and unresistingly carried along, as by a spell, by the ease, the
grace, the fluency and the pleasing, emphatic delivery of the
speaker. His sallies of wit, his biting sarcasm, his happy
retorts and home thrusts; his satiric turn, or his playful humor
rendered him a more agreeable and popular speaker than
others who were more severe and elaborate. If Ridicule be
the test of Truth, he had a most effective way of drawing her
into the light of all the orators of his day; he possessed the
rare art of trying the measures and the opinions of the promi-
nent men, to whom it was his destiny to be regularly opposed,
by that touchstone; and by it to hold them up to the derision
or censure of the People. With this powerful lever, he could
shake, if not move from its foundations, any administration.
That it contributed in no small degree to subvert that of the
second Adams, no man can doubt who witnessed his repeated
and dexterous attacks, and observed the effects of his peculiar
mode of warfare."'
Sawyer also tells us that Randolph never entered into a
contest to catch the eye of the Speaker : * * If he saw an
eagerness in members to give their views, *' he says, **he
generally waited till the last one had concluded and the
question was ordered to be put. '*^ In another place, the
same writer expresses the opinion that, as an orator, Ran-
dolph was more splendid than solid ^; yet there could be no
better proof of the admiration excited by Randolph's
eloquence in the House than the language which Sawyer,
who was a thick and thin administration Democrat, and far
from partial to Randolph personally, sometimes employs in
regard to him. Randolph, he thought, was still a powerful
extemporaneous speaker as late as the debates over the
admission of Missouri into the Union in 1821/ There
» P. 123. « P. 58. » P. 123. 4 p. 82.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 77
had been no biographers of Randolph before himself, he
says, to mark "the bright track of his resplendent car. " "
In using such a figure of speech, Sawyer was but doing
what ahnost all commentators on Randolph as an orator
do, when endeavoring to describe the general effect of his
speeches on their minds. Corruscation, brilliancy, high
candle-power is the dominant idea that the hearer seems
to have brought away from them. For instance, when
Thomas H. Benton comes to speak of Randolph, he finds
his illustration in the same field of imagery as Sawyer.
"For more than thirty years," he says, **he [Randolph] was
the political meteor of Congress, blazing with undiminished
splendor, during the whole time, and often appearing as the
•planetary plague' which shed not war and pestilence on
nations but agony and fear on members."*
In 1808, the year succeeding that in which Sawyer took
his seat in the House, Francis Walker Gilmer heard Ran-
dolph in the House for the first time, and, later, recorded
the impression left on him in his Sketches, which it is
impossible for any Virginian to read without remembering
that they were written by a brilliant young man who was
prematurely cut off like a blossoming spray from a fruit
tree when he had hardly passed that * * delightful season of
life" which Randolph, in the Virginia Convention of 1829-
30, feelingly reminded its presiding officer, the aged James
Monroe, that neither of them could ever recall 3; but not
imtil Jefferson had pronounced him **the best educated
subject we have raised since the Revolution, '*^ and Ran-
dolph had conferred upon him the full measure of his
admiring and affectionate friendship.
"The first time that I ever felt the spell of eloquence,"
declares Gilmer, "was when a boy standing in the gallery of
« P. 5.
»jo Yrs.* View, v. i., 473. » Debates, 313.
*L»/e, by Randall, v. 3, 497.
78 John Randolph of Roanoke
the Capitol in the year 1808. It was on the floor of that
House I saw rise a gentleman who in every quality of his per-
son, his voice, his mind, his character, is a phenomenon
amongst men. His figure is tall, spare and somewhat emaci-
ated; his limbs long, delicate, slow and graceful in all their
motions; his countenance with the lineaments of boyhood, but
the wrinkles, the faded complexion, the occasional sadness of
old age, and even of decrepitude; possessing however vast
compass and force of expression. His voice is small b:ut of the
clearest tone and most flexible modulation I ever heard. In
his speech, not a breath of air is lost; it is all compressed into
round, smooth liquid sound; and its inflections are so sweet, its
emphasis so appropriate and varied, that there is a positive
pleasure in hearing him speak any words whatever. His
manner of thinking is as peculiar as his person and voice.
He has so long spoken parables that he now thinks in them.
Antitheses, jests, beautiful conceits, with a striking turn and
point of expression, flow from his lips with the same natural
ease, and often with singular felicity of application, as regular
series of arguments follow each other in the deductions of
logical thinkers. His invective, which is always piquant, is
frequently adorned with the beautiful metaphors of Burke
and animated by bursts of passion worthy of Chatham.
Popular opinion has ordained Mr. Randolph the most eloquent
speaker now in America."'
But Gilmer's appreciation is not without its limitations,
though they are somewhat inconsistent with the rest of his
text. The epithets applicable to Randolph *s style of speak-
ing were * ' striking ' * and * * brilliant, * ' he further says. Ran-
dolph adapted his phrases to the sense, with poetic felicity,
and his voice to the sound, with musical exactness; but the
nature of his eloquence was not favorable to the excite-
ment of any deep or permanent passion. His deliberate,
graceful, and commanding delivery could not be too much
praised; but his total want of method could not be too
much condemned. There was no breach in the train of
John Marshall's thoughts; there was little connection be-
» P. 18.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 79
tween Mr. Randolph's. Each had his separate excellence,
but each was far from being a finished orator, (a) Samuel
C. Jewett, of Maine, an ardent administration Republican,
writing to General H. A. S. Dearborn, of Massachusetts,
on Feb. 5, 181 7, has this glowing praise to bestow on
Randolph as an orator, though of the opinion that he was
a very useless member of Congress :
"I was highly amused on Monday in hearing John Ran-
dolph abuse the District of Columbia in consequence of a
petition of one of the incorporated banks to be corporated.
He talked about every subject, and made an elegant speech
about matters and things in general. He is truly a man of
astonishing powers of mind. His manner of speaking is the
most forcible I ever witnessed, and his language elegant
beyond description. ' ' *
W. H. Sparks, in his Memories of Fifty Years, thus
depicts for us Randolph's appearance about 1821 :
** His figure was ouire; his voice fine as the treble of a violin;
his face wan, wrinkled and without beard; his limbs long
and unsightly, especially his arms and fingers. The skin
seemed to grow to the attenuated bone, and the large, ill-
formed joints were extremely ugly.'*^
To this auditor, too, the strongest impression conveyed
by the eloquence of Randolph was that of lustre; of a
radiant figure appareled in exceeding brightness; and, in
his eflEort to communicate his impression to the reader,
he uses a tawdry simile unworthy of his general literary
merits. Referring to the debates over the admission of
Missoiui into the Union, he says :
'* Mr. Randolph was the leader in the debates of the House,
and occupied the floor frequently in the delivery of lengthy
and almost always very interesting speeches. These touched
» Wm. & Mary College Quarterly, v. 17, 140.
' P. 236.
8o John Randolph of Roanoke
every subject connected with the Government, its history and
its powers. They were brilliant and beautiful ; full of classical
learning and allusion, and sparkling as a casket of diamonds
thrown upon and rolling along a Wilton carpet.'*"
This is almost as bad as the naive allegation in The
South in the Building of the Nation that Randolph "was
a tall, lean, lank man with long fingers which he used to
great advantage in debate.*'* — an artless announcement
which, by the way, reminds us of the foreword in the
ferocious attack which Richard Rush made upon Ran-
dolph in 1828, under the name of Julius: '*The fiend is
long and lean and lank. *'
Julius Melboum informs us that Randolph * ' stood and
walked exactly perpendicular. *' ' ' No marble pillar could
be formed more so, " he says. Melboum also says: "He
had a fine eye but there was no more expression or varia-
tion in the color of his face than in a block of granite. ' ' *
"His peculiar voice, sweet as a flute and an octave higher
than other men's voices, his long, wand-like fingers, spare
form, pallid face — the skin upon it not wrinkled but corrugated
into compartments like a bed-quilt — his dark, large clear eye,
his stately but quiet carriage, made him beyond expression the
most striking person I have ever met."^
These words are extracted from the Reminiscences of
David Holmes Conrad, who first heard Randolph speak
in the House in 18 12. In his very important recollections
of John Randolph, Jacob Harvey, who first became ac-
quainted with him about 1823, says:
**More than 20 years have elapsed since I first became
acquainted with the late eccentric John Randolph. But time
has not obliterated the deep impressions which his great and
« P. 226.
>V. 12 (So. Biog.), ^2S,
iLifei&fc.f of J, M.J by Hammond, 91.
4 Scrap Book of Ellen Bruce Baylor.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 8i
varied talents made upon my memory; nor shall I ever forget,
while life remains, the delight with which I listened to his most
captivating eloquence. ' * '
In a letter to Caroline Webster, his future wife, undated,
but written from Washington in 1816, Lewis H. Machen,
an accomplished scholar, who held a position in the office
of the Secretary of the United States Senate for nearly
fifty years, institutes this comparison between Randolph
and Pinkney as orators :
**Mr. Randolph and Mr. Pinkney possess great oratorical
powers but differ in their peculiar excellence. Randolph, cool
and collected, is seldom agitated, or even warmed by his
subject. Desultory, and perhaps superficial, incapable of the
higher species of eloquence, seldom attempting alone logical
deduction, and never with success, he yet seizes the attention
by the fascination of his manner, communicates his ideas with
great clearness, and gives to the subject every grace which an
intimate acquaintance with classic literature seldom fails to
impart. Those who desire profound investigation would
return from Mr. Randolph disappointed; but for cool, yet
cutting sarcasm, severity of retort, quickness of reply, the play
of fancy, and corruscations of wit, he has scarcely a superior."^
The vigor and brilliancy of Randolph's mind remained
unimpaired down to the time when he became a member
of the United States Senate, and, even during his Senato-
rial term, and afterwards, he spoke occasionally with his
former inspiration ; but from the date of his election to the
Senate began the extreme irrelevancy and extravagance
of speech which would compel us to believe that at times,
during his Senatorial term, his intellect was gravely dis-
ordered, even if positive testimony to that effect had not
been rendered in the litigation which arose over his wills
after his death. The melodious bells of his eloquence
' Tlie New Mirror, Aug. 19, 1843, v. i, 312.
'Letters of A, W, Machen, compiled by A. W. Machen, Jr., 44.
VOL. II — 6
82 John Randolph of Roanoke
were still sweet, but often they were like sweet bells
jangled — out of tune. Niles, the proprietor of NiUs*
Register, was very hostile to him. Newspapers generally
were; for his candid, feariess tongue impugned their accu-
racy and fairness too often for their editors to cherish any
friendly feeling for him ; and besides he was as morbidly
sensitive to the tyranny of the press as to other forms
of tyranny; but the following observations on Ran-
dolph, which appeared in Niles' Register in 1826, when
Randolph was a Senator, doubtless have at least the
semblance of truth which belongs even to the grossest
caricatiu*e :
** Those who never have heard this far-famed, highly gifted
and extraordinary man deliver one of his free speeches, or rather
'long talks,' cannot entertain anything like a tolerably correct
idea either of his manner or his matter. The first cannot be
placed upon paper, and no other than a master in the histrionic
art, some one like Matthews, can fairly represent it; and the
second, if put down exactly as delivered, word for word, with all
the pauses, nods and motions, would seem no other than a
broad caricature of what he did say to at least ninety-nine such
persons out of a hundred. Many of his speeches are written
out and placed into his hands for revision (Note : — The editors
of the National Intelligencer are pretty freely charged with
suppressing his late speeches. It is well known in Washington
that they are not censurable for the suppression or delay of
them) ; and, when not so, no regular reporter would risk his own
reputation for fidelity by giving the thousand expletives and
sharply-pointed and rough words, with which these speeches, or
talks, abound. The subjects touched by him are, no doubt,
correctly set forth; but the whole that he says never is pub-
lished, and for the reason above stated — not that Mr. R.
would shrink from any responsibility on account of words used,
but because of the repetition and redundancy of his words,
with his innumerable *Yes, Sirs,' and *No, Sirs.' Now and
then, however, he delivers a sentence, as perhaps no other
man can, direct to his purpose, beautiful in its construction^
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 83
and with something that is pleasing even in its asperity; which
interests even in its rudeness, or wanton attack upon private
or defenceless individuals; and, in general, it is in severe
invective or desultory conversation that he excels ; and in these,
indeed, he wonderfully excells. He rarely attempts what
would be called a regular argument, and to dwell for one hour
upon any subject is not expected of him. Nine-tenths of his
long speeches just as well apply to a discussion about the
constitutional powers of congress to make a road as to the case
of John Smith or the long disputed claim about Amy Darden's
stud-horse; and hence it is that, on one occasion, last week,
the Senate was left without a quorum to adjourn, and on
another that there were hardly a dozen senators in their seats,
at least one of whom appeared to be pretty soundly asleep, and
for nearly an hour, towards the close of the sitting.
**Though frequent opportunities have occurred, it is several
years since I listened to Mr. Randolph even for half an hour
at a time: but, on the 2nd inst., I spent thirty-five minutes in
the Senate while he was speaking. What he said during that
period, if fully reported, would fill from two to three pages of
this work — I mean, if all the words that he used were printed.
I had been told that the Bankrupt Bill was before the Senate,
but, during the time stated, he never, to the best of my
recollection, mentioned, or even remotely alluded to, it, or any
of its parts, in any manner whatsoever. The following is a
faithful account of the chief subjects that he talked about. I
do not pretend to give his words, unless here and there; but as
to the substance of what he did say I am not mistaken, if sub-
stance there was in his remarks.
"When I entered the chamber, he was giving out a plan to
make a bank by persons resolved to become *rag-earls.' Well
— Sir, we agree to make a bank. You subscribe 10,000 dol-
lars, you 10,000, and you 10 or 20,000, and so on; looking
toward different members. Then we borrow some rags, or
make up the capital out of our own promissory notes. Next
we buy an iron chest, for safety against fire and against thieves,
but the latter is wholly unnecessary; who would steal our
paper, Sir? All being ready, we issue bills; I wish I had one of
them (himting his pockets as though he expected to find one),
84 John Randolph of Roanoke
like the Owl Creek Bank or Washington and Warren, black or
red; I think, Sir, they begin with *I promise to Pay*; yes,
promise to pay. Sir — promise to pay. He dwelt upon this
making of a bank for about five minutes, and then said
something concerning Unitarians in religion and pohtics;
making a dash at the President and the administration;
mentioning also Sir Robert Walpole in a way that I do
not recollect. Then he spoke of the Bible, and expi:essed
his disgust at what are called 'family Bibles*; though he
thought no family safe or would flourish without a Bible;
but not of an American edition! These published by the
Stationers Company of London ought only, or chiefly, to
have authority, except those from the presses of the Universi-
ties of Oxford and Cambridge. He described these corpora-
tions briefly. They would be fined 10,000 £ sterling, if they
should leave the word noi out of the Seventh Commandment,
however convenient it might be to some, or agreeable to others,
(looking directly at certain members, and half-turning himself
round to the ladies). He never bought an American edition
of any book. He had no faith in their accuracy. He wished
all his books to have CadelVs imprint — Cadell, of the Strand,
London. But people were liable to be cheated. He had
bought a copy of Aristotle's Ethics to present to a lady, to a
lady, Sir, who could understand them, yes, Sir — and he found
it full of errors, though it had Cadell's imprint; which he gave
us to understand was a forgery. From the Bible he passed
to Shakespeare, or rather mingled the holy writings with the
productions of the poet, preferring each nearly equally, and
drubbing some one that he named most soundly for having had
the impudence to publish a 'family Shakespeare,* and he made
a quotation from his favorite author. He next jumped on the
American 'Protestant Episcopal church,* and vehemently dis-
avowed all connection with it; declaring that he belonged to
the Church of Old England. He told us that he was baptized
by a man regularly authorized by the Bishop of London who
had laid his hands upon him, (laying his own hands on the
head of the gentleman next to him), and he spoke warmly of
the character of the Bishop and of the priest who had baptised
him; wishing that the latter might have lived to perform the
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 85
last office for him. Then as in reference to the Episcopal
church he gave something as a quotation from a part of the
service, beginning with 'them that* — ^as reprobating its gram-
mar, and impl)dng that no good man could belong to a church
which used such language! Suddenly, he spoke about wine.
It was often mentioned in the Bible, and he approved of the
drinking of it, if in a gentlemanly way, at the table; not in the
doset; not in the closet; but, as to whiskey, he demanded that
any one shotdd shew him the word in the Bible; it was not
there. No, Sir, you can't find it in the whole book. Next,
or shortly after this, he spoke of his land, saying that he held
it by a royal grant, with which he seemed greatly pleased; but,
in a minute or two, was speaking of the 'men of Kent,' in
England, saying that Kent had never been conquered by
William the Conqueror, but had made terms with him, and, in
consequence, when the militia of England are called to the
field, the men of Kent are entitled to the front rank. He spoke
of a song which had been made on the 'men of Kent,' which, I
think, he said he would give a thousand pounds to have been
the author of. He was apparently about to rehearse or sing it,
when, being close to Mr. Randolph, and within three or four
steps of the door, I hastily retreated, and left the chamber,
wondering what the 'men of Kent' and William the Conqueror
had to do with the royal grant by which Mr. Randolph held his
land, or what relation that tenure had to the bill before the
senate to establish an uniform system of bankruptcy; and
thinking that to eat my dinner was an affair as interesting, at
half past 3 o'clock, as to hear a song about the 'men of Kent.'
**I could Jiave made the preceding sketch more ample than
it is, but would avoid the suspicion of misrepresenting the
'Senator from Virginia.' He talks with so much ease that,
unless for want of 'meat, drink or sleep,' one would suppose
that he might speak twelve months without stopping; though
he freely stops to rest himself, and keeps the senate waiting,
when he pleases. A greater part of the time that I heard him,
he was leaning, or lolling, against the railing which is fixed
behind the outer row of chairs, to protect the senators from
the pressure of persons passing around the chamber; and the
careless ease, with which he delivered himself, brought to mind
86 John Randolph of Roanoke
the* Arabian Nights Entertainments,' because of their fluency.
They, however, have a regular design, which his speeches have
not. Mr. Randolph says any thing which happens to cross his
mind, and cares not a tittle whether it belongs to any subject
that ever was discussed, or ever shall be discussed, or not; and
it is this perfect indifference to everything like method, with
the versatility of his talents, his sometimes beautiful sentences,
keen wit and unsparing invective that causes *tlie million* to
press in crowds to hear him, and makes the chamber of the
Senate of the United States a place of deposit for empty Sena-
torial seats. It has rarely, if ever, happened, before Mr. Ran-
dolph's long speeches were heard in the Senate, that that body
adjourned without a quorum, or that a quorum was not pres-
ent to listen to what a member had to say. The courtesy of
the gentlemen composing it, one towards another, has for-
bidden occurrences of this sort; but to expect that persons shall
quietly keep their places, and listen five or six hours to discourses
not at all interesting to them, and when, perhaps, they may not
have touched food for nine or ten hours, is out of all reason,
and far beyond aught that courtesy should require. The
Vice President, however, always retains his seat, like patience
on a monument,* and, indeed, very seldom even changes his
position. Such is a faint, but faithful, outline of proceedings
had in the Senate of the United States. Who is chiefly to
blame for such transactions, the Senate, as a body, the Vice-
President, or Mr. Randolph alone, is not for me to say; but it
is generally felt, and pretty freely acknowledged, by many of
the Senators themselves, that their body has lost a large por-
tion of their own respect for it, and of the respect of the people,
through Mr. Randolph's incessant talking. If every other
gentleman spoke as long as he does, and every one might speak
as long and as much to the purpose as he commonly does, a
three years' perpetual session would not do the business of a
week; for it must further be observed that, except in the simple
act of giving his vote, Mr. R. attends not to public business,
unless speaking is to be regarded as doing the business of the
nation. This may be agreeable to the established notion of the
Attick 'School of Virginia,* as set forth by Mr. Ritchie in the
E7iguirer, but will not suit the 'Boeotians* of Pennsylvania, &c.,
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 87
as the people of that great and prosperous commonwealth
have been called. Persons of the 'Schools* of Mr. Giles, or of
Mr. Randolph, would spend more time in discussing the powers
and duties of a legislature to make a road or build a bridge
than Pennsylvania would require to pass the law and effect all
the purposes of it. Which is best, may be seen in the progress
of population and wealth in the two States. Why is it that
the statesmen of Virginia do not attend to these things ? Every
feeling o£,my heart is that Virginia should be a strong state.
It is for the 'general welfare' that she should so be. But her
politicians, by talking and speaking, have made her a compara-
tively weak one. They would, however, be amply punished
by being compelled to sit six hours every day, and preserve the
appearance of listening to Mr. Randolph. They would
heartily wish that gentleman at home, 'planting com' in his
own fields, with his own hands; or in England, or anywhere
else, so that they could not hear him : and yet his speeches are
read with great avidity, as matters of amusement, when seated
at our leisure, and at liberty to read or let it alone."'
Commenting on this article, the editor of the Franklin
Gazette justly said:
** It is an easy matter to turn into ridicule a man of eccentric
manners. We publish a specimen of this kind of wit today
from Niles* Register, and though the report of facts may be
correct, as far as it goes, had the whole speech been candidly
reported, and not for the purpose of producing a ludicrous
effect ; had not the characteristic peculiarities been presented in
a glaring light, and the subject matter been studiously kept
out of view, we are, indeed, much mistaken if the reader would
agree with Mr. Niles when he asserts that the speech had no
bearing upon the bill before the House.*"
To these comments Niles rejoined with considerable
heat, and published in the same issue from the columns of
the National Intelligencer an unrevised report of a speech
* Niles* Register, May 13, 1826, v. 6, 186 (3rd series).
* Niles* Register, Aug. 26, 1826, v. 6 (3rd series), 441.
88 John Randolph of Roanoke
by Randolph on a Senate bill providing for an addition to
the number of Circuit Judges, which he contended was a
fair standard by which to test the justice of his article.
In the Senate, Randolph, doubtless, often spoke much
that was very little germane to the subject of the debate,
but, as this report did not pretend to be anything but an
tmfinished sketch, it may well be accepted with grave
doubts. After reading every reported speech delivered
by Randolph in Congress, we can at least say that no such
rambling and incoherent speech as the one outlined in
this sketch was ever reported in the record of the House
debates. Moreover, we should remember that it was,
perhaps, of this speech that Randolph wrote from The
Hague to Dr. Brockenbrough in these terms on Aug. 8,
1826:
**I hope, however, that no report of my speeches will be
taken as evidence of what I have uttered ; for I have never seen
anything further from a just representation than the report of
one that G. and S. say I in part revised. And so I did, and, if
they had printed it by their own proof-sheet, now in London, I
should have been better satisfied with that part; the first, that
I did not revise, is mangled, and hardly intelligible even to
me.
More important than the satire of Niles is a letter from
Daniel Webster, who, however, had a sore spot in his
memory too, to Mr. Denison :
**Mr. Randolph,'' Webster said, **was elected last fall a
Senator from Virginia. It was unexpected, but his great
devotion to certain political opinions cherished in that State
gave him the election. He is a violent opposer of the present
government, and has conducted his part of the discussions
in the Senate in a way hitherto altogether unknown. The
Vice President has found out that he has no authority to call
him to order or restrain his wanderings; so he talks on for two,
« Garland, v. 2, 272.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 89
four and sometimes six hours at a time, saying whatever
occurs to him on all subjects. This course and its indulgence
by the Presiding OflScer of the Senate (Calhoun) has produced
a very strong sensation throughout the country/'*
But there was an individual and a highly intellectual
and discriminating one, too, who took a much more favor-
able view of Randolph's loquacity and excursiveness when
a Senator ; and that was Josiah Quincy , Jr. In his Figures
of the Past, he speaks in one place of the ''admiration*'
with which he had listened to the * * wonderful improvisa-
tion in the Senate *' of Randolph. * And, in the same vol-
ume, after mentioning that he had twice heard him in the
Senate, he says:
'* His speeches were charming or provoking, according to the
point of view of the listener. To a Senator anxious to expedite
the public business or to hurry through the bill he had in
charge, Randolph's harangues upon all sorts of irrelevant
subjects must have been very annojdng; but to one who was
not troubled by such responsibility they were a delightful
entertainment. There was no effort about the speeches; they
were given with absolute ease; the speaker constantly changing
his position, turning from side to side, and at times leaning
against the rail which enclosed the Senatorial chairs. His
dress was a blue riding coat with buckskin breeches; for he
always rode to the Senate, followed by his black servant; both
master and man being finely mounted. His voice was silvery
in its tones ; becoming unpleasantly shrill only when conveying
direct invective. Four-fifths of what he said had the slender-
est possible connection with the subject which had called him
up; but, so far as the chance visitor was concerned, this variety
only added a charm to the entertainment "^
A few pages later, when describing Randolph's second
speech in relation to the Panama mission, Quincy ob-
serves:
» Life of Daniel Webster , by George Ticknor Curtis, 2nd Ed., N. Y. v. i,
270. »P.2I2. 3 p. 220.
90 John Randolph of Roanoke
'*But Mr. Randolph's great effort (if I may so call a per-
formance which to him was evidently no effort at all) was
reserved for the next day. He announced that he should ask
for the consideration of his resolution immediately upon the
meeting of the Senate, and that meant that another speech
would be forthcoming. I was early upon the spot, and for two
hours (he) held my attention fixed by his various and fluent
improvisations, his cutting irony, his terribly sincere, although
absolutely undeserved, denunciations. His memory and
imagination seemed inexhaustible. He would take a subject
(almost any which happened to get in his way), turn and twist
it about, display it in some fantastic light, and then with scorn
push it aside."*
James Buchanan was in the House with Randolph at
one time, and he also has something to say about Ran-
dolph as an orator :
*' He had a shrill and penetrating voice, and could be heard
distinctly in every portion of the House. He spoke with great
deliberation, and often paused for an instant as if to select
the most appropriate word. His manner was confident, proud
and imposing; and pointing, as he always did, his long finger at
the object of attack, he gave peculiar emphasis to the severity
of his language.*'*
Because of the enmity excited by his aggressive peculi-
arities, Randolph's influence in the House, Buchanan
thought, **bore no proportion to the brilliancy of his
talents."^
Randolph, as he was during the debates of the Virginia
Constitutional Convention of 1829-30, has also been de-
picted in a highly life-like manner by more than one hand.
**We have often heard persons attempt to imitate his
[Randolph's] voice; but we have never known anyone to
succeed; for it was in fact inimitable," says Hugh R. Pleasants.
« P. 226.
' Life of Jas, Buchanan, by Curtis, v. i , 29. » Ibid,
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 91
"We know not how the opera people would class it; for we
doubt whether any of them ever heard anything like it. It
was higher than that of men generally, yet it did not in the
least partake of that harsh quality which is generally found
associated with a higher voice in persons of the sterner sex.
On the contrary, it was as soft, as rich and as delicious as the
most mellifluous tones of Jenny Lind, when she pours her
whole soul into one of her breathing melodies. Of course, we
speak of him only, as we saw him in the Convention; for we
never saw him in any other deliberative body, and we are
disposed to think that he was more himself, while here, than
he had been elsewhere for years. It has been said that in his
unhappy moments in Congress, while laboring under fits of
violent exasperation, his voice became dry and harsh in the
extreme. . . . He usually spoke with the greatest delibera-
tion; his left hand resting on his cane, and his right employed
in giving emphasis to his words. Each sentence, nay each
word, seemed to be thoroughly weighed before he gave utter-
ance to it; and it was pronounced so distinctly that it was
impossible to mistake it. We once saw a beautiful handwrit-
ing, so distinct that it could be read as easily as print, which
possessed the remarkable peculiarity of having a full stop after
every word. We have often thought there was some analogy
between it and Mr. Randolph's style of speaking, as it pre-
sented itself to our observation in the Convention. . . . Mr.
Randolph's eyes exceeded in brightness and penetration any
we have ever seen in a human head. They absolutely blazed
when kindled by the excitement of debate. It was his custom
to employ very little gesticulation, his forefinger being used
almost entirely for purposes of that sort."*
Another spectator of the proceedings of the Convention
was Jeremiah Bell Jeter, one of the most celebrated Bap-
tist divines of his day.
"The most notable man in the body," he said, **or at least
the member who made the deepest impression on my mind,
' "Sketches of Va. Conv., 1829-30," by Hugh R. Pleasants, So. LU.
Mess., v. 17, 303» 304.
92 John Randolph of Roanoke
and of whom I retain the most vivid recollection, was John
Randolph of Roanoke. He was unquestionably the most
perfect orator to whom in the course of half a century it has
been my privilege to listen. I have heard many of the most
eminent speakers of the present day in this country, and some
in Europe, in legislative halls, and in pulpits, and I have not
seen one who seemed so thoroughly to understand the art of
public speaking as he did. I have probably heard speakers
more profound in thought, more convincing in argument and
more moving in appeal ; but none so faultless in speaking as was
the orator of Roanoke. His voice was sharp and quite peculiar,
but not unpleasing to the ear. His gestures were few, but all
graceful and expressive. In the art of pausing, he was unrival-
led. He would throw together the clauses of a sentence, excit-
ing expectation, and, before he would bring out its meaning
with his hand gracefully elevated, he would pause as if some
thought too large for utterance were struggling to find expres-
sion. There was no doubt but that the sentence would be
gracefully and forcibly finished. The delay intensified the
desire to hear the conclusion. Every head was pressed for-
ward, and every eye was strained to mark the effect of the
coming bolt ; nor was there any disappointment when it came.
It went to the mark with unerring precision, and with resistless
force. His style was natural, clear and strong, adapted simply
to convey and press his thoughts.'*^
Another description of Randolph in the Convention is
from the pen of George Wythe Munford, who was for a
time its secretary. He tells us
**that Randolph's head, in proportion to his frame, was small;
that his hair grew low upon his brow, and that he parted it in
the middle; that his features were rather delicate and feminine;
that his eyes were black and full of lustre; that his voice was
peculiarly feminine and shrill, yet clear as the tones of a silver
bell, and of a compass to convey its lowest whisper to a dis-
tance; that his neck was very short, and deeply seated between
his shoulders, which were somewhat elevated, and that his
' Recollections of a Long Life, 169, 170.
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 93
frame, for one so thin, was massive; his arms unusually long
and his fingers attenuated."'
As to Randolph's methods of speech when addressing
the Convention, Munford, who had heard him in the
United States Senate, tells us that they were wholly differ-
ent from his eccentric and discursive mode of speaking in
that body.
"It [Randolph's first speech] was calm, collected, dignified
and commanding," he says, **and his gesticulation was that of
a master actor. He would begin to express a thought in lan-
guage, and then, leaving the sentence incomplete, would by a
wave of the hand or a change of the muscles of the face, give the
idea as perfect to the mind as if conveyed by the most speaking
words. No reporter can catch these peculiarities, and it is
difficult to convey a just conception of the effect."^
Dwelling further on the dramatic element of Ran-
dolph's oratory, Munford, after quoting some of Ran-
dolph's previous utterances in his first speech, adds :
**And then he said 'the gentleman from Augusta,* and he
seized his cravat with both hands, and twisted and pulled at it,
as if feeling a sense of extreme suffocation, and the contortions
efface, united with the efforts of the hands to relax the throttle
he felt — the whole gesture — expressing the idea so forcibly that
you saw it palpable that he intended to say that Virginia was
suffering strangulation from the ruffians who were assailing
her."^
Equally speaking are the words of Hugh Blair Grigsby,
who was himself a member of the Convention; having
succeeded to the vacancy created by the resignation of
Robert Barraud Taylor :
*'Of all the members of the Convention, Mr. Randolph
excited the greatest curiosity. Not a word that fell from
' The Two Parsons, etc., 568.
•W., 571. */^.,57i.
94 John Randolph of Roanoke
his lips escaped the public ear; not a movement the public
eye. When he rose to speak, the empty galleries began to fill,
and, when he ended and the spell was dissolved, the throng
passed away. It was on the 14th of November he made his
first speech. Mr. Stanard had just concluded his speech, and
the question on the amendment of Judge Green to the resolu-
tion of the Legislative Committee, basing the representation
in the House of Delegates on white population exclusively, was
about to be taken when he arose to address the chair. The
word passed through the City in an instant that Randolph
was speaking, and soon the House, the Lobby and the Gallery
were crowded almost to suffocation. He was evidently ill at
ease when he began his speech, but soon recovered himself
when he saw the telling effect of every sentence that he uttered.
He spoke nearly two hours, and, throughout that time, every
eye was fixed upon him, and, among the most attentive of his
hearers, were Mr. Madison and Mr. Monroe, who had not
heard him before since his rupture with the administration
of their predecessor in the Presidency. From that day, he
addressed the body with perfect self-possession, and, although
he did not at any subsequent time speak at length, he fre-
quently mingled with marked ability in debate; and it was
easy to tell from the first sentence that fell from his lips when
he was in fine tune and temper, and, on such occasions, the
thrilling music of his speech fell upon the ear of that excited
assembly like the voice of a bird singing in the pause of the
storm. It is difficult to explain the influence which he exerted
in that body. He inspired terror to a degree that, even at this
distance of time, seems inexplicable. He was feared alike by
East and West, by friend and foe. The arrows from his
quiver, if not dipped in poison, were pointed and barbed,
rarely missed the mark, and as seldom failed to make a rank-
ling wound. He seemed to paralyze alike the mind and body
of his victim. What made his attack more vexatious, every
sarcasm took effect amid the plaudits of his audience. He
called himself, on one occasion, a tomahawker and a scalper,
and true to the race, from which he sprung, he never explained
away or took back anything; and, as he knew the private as
well as the public history of every prominent member, it was
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 95
impossible for his opponents to foresee from what quarter,
and on whom his attacks would fall. He also had political
accounts of long standing to settle with sundry individuals,
and none could tell when the day of reckoning would arrive.
And, when it did come, it was a stem and fearful one. What
unnerved his opponents, was a conviction of his invulnerability,
apparent or real; for, unconnected as he was by any social
relation, and ready to fall back on a colossal fortune, he was
not on equal terms with men who were struggling to acquire a
competency, and whose hearts were bound by all the endearing
ties of domestic love. Moreover, it was impossible to answer
a sneer or a sarcasm with an argument. To attempt anything
of the kind was to raise a laugh at one's expense . Hence the
strong and the weak in a contest with him were upon the same
level. In early youth, the face of Mr. Randolph was beautiful,
and its lineaments are in some degree preserved in his portrait
by Stuart; but, as he advanced in life, it lost its freshness, and
began to assume that aspect which the poet Moore described
in his diary as a young-old face, and which is so faithfully
portrayed by Harding. His voice, which was one of the great
sources of his power, ranged from tenor to treble ; it had no bass
notes ; its volume was full at times, but, though heard distinctly
in the hall and the galleries, it had,* doubtless, lost much of the
sweetness and roundness of its earlier years. Its sarcastic
tones were on a high key. He was, too, though he had the art
to conceal his art from common observers, a consummate actor.
In the philosophy of voice and gesture, and in the use of the
pause, he was as perfect an adept as ever trod the boards of
Covent Garden or Drury Lane. When he described Chapman
Johnson as stretching his arm to intercept and clutch the
sceptre, as it was passing over Rock Fish Gap, or, when he
rallied him for speaking not, 'fifteen minutes as he promised,
but two hours, not by Shrewsbury Clock, but by as good a
watch as can be made in the City of London,' and, opening the
case of his hunting watch, held it up to the view of the Chair-
man ; or, when seeking to deride the length of Johnson's speech,
he said, 'The Gentleman said yesterday, or the day before, or
the day before that,' Garrick or Kean would have crowned his
acting with applause. No weight of character, no grade of
96 John Randolph of Roanoke
intellect afforded a shield impenetrable by his shaft. Probably
the committee, to which was referred, near its close, all the
resolutions of the Convention, with a view of having them
drawn in the form of a Constitution, was the most venerable
in years, in genius, in all the accomplishments of the human
mind, and in length and value of public service, that ever
sat on this side of the Atlantic. Madison, Marshall, Tazewell,
Doddridge, Watkins Leigh, Johnson and Cooke were the
seven members who composed it. Yet Mr. Randolph, almost
without an effort, raised a laugh at their expense. It appears,
if I am not mistaken, that some qualification of the right of
suffrage, which was embraced in the resolutions, was not to be
found in the reported draft, and to this omission Mr. Ran-
dolph called the attention of the House. Mr. Leigh observed
that, if Mr. Randolph's views were carried out, it would
virtually leave the entire regulation of the right of suffrage to
the General Assembly. Randolph replied, with all his pecu-
liar emphasis and gesture, *Sir, I would as soon trust the House
of Burgesses of the Commonwealth of Virginia as the Com-
mittee of Seven.' I followed his finger, and, amid the roar of
laughter, which burst forth, I saw Mr. Madison and Mr. Leigh
suddenly and unconsciously bow their heads. He idolized
Shakespeare, and cherished a taste for the drama; and, in this
department of literature, as well as in that of the older English
classics from Elizabeth to Anne, and, indeed, in all that was
embraced by the curiosity and taste of a scholar, his library
was rich. He spoke and wrote the English language in all its
purity and elegance, and his opponents had at least the grati-
fication of knowing that they were abused in good English;
indeed, Madison could not vie with him in a full and ready
control over the vocabulary or the harmony of the English
tongue. His later speeches exemplify this remark in a more
striking manner than his earlier ones. In his speech on
Retrenchment, delivered in the House of Representatives in
1828, one meets with sentences of great beauty, and it may be
observed that, towards the close of that speech, is one of the few
pathetic touches to be found in his productions. Yet it may
well be doubted whether his speeches will hold a high place
in aftertimes. His sayings will be quoted in the South; and
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator 97
some of his speeches will tindoubtedly be read; but they
will hardly emerge beyond Mason and Dixon's line, and never
reach, even within that Umit, the dignity of models. What Sir
James Mcintosh observed to an American respecting one of his
speeches, will probably convey, when oral tradition grows
faint, the impression which they make on impartial minds —
that there was a striving after effect — 3, disposition to say
smart or hard things beyond the ability. On the score of
argument, they were beneath criticism. It is but just, how-
ever, to say that Mr. Randolph protested against the authen-
ticity of most of the speeches attributed to him. Those in
the published debates of the Convention are tmdoubtedly
authentic, and must have received his revisal."'
In another place, in the same discourse, Grigsby speaks
of "the rich soprano" of Randolph.*
« Va. Conv. cf 182Q-30, 41.
VOL. II— 7
CHAPTER V
Randolph's District
It was thought by some, who had heard Randolph both
in Congress and on the hustings, that he particularly
excelled on the hustings " ; and, happily for us, Powhatan
Bouldin, a native of Charlotte County, was forehanded
enough, before the besom of time had swept away all of
Randolph's contemporaries in his old Congressional Dis-
trict, to collect from some of the most prominent of them
a remarkably well-written series of recollections re-
lating to him. After reading these papers, we are at
no loss to know just what the Rev. James Waddell Alex-
ander, who was the pastor from 1 826-1 828 of the Presby-
terian Church at Charlotte Court House, meant when
he said that Randolph was the Magnus Apollo of
Southside Virginia. Indeed, the writer of these pages
can testify that, as late as his early manhood, the clang of
that silver bow was almost as real to the ear of his
generation as it had been to that of Randolph's. How far
Randolph is still the subject of popular conversation in
Charlotte County, he cannot affirm, but he knows that,
45 years ago, a group of lawyers could hardly gather about
a tavern table at Charlotte Court House, or a group of
planters assemble on its court green, without bearing
witness in their talk, in some way or other, to the inefface-
able imprint made by Randolph upon the minds of those
who had seen and heard him. And never, too, did- we
* Bouldin, 55.
98
Randolph's District 99
hear anyone, who had known or seen Randolph, even if
it were only an aged negro whom he had chided for block-
ing his road, recall any words uttered by him without
attempting to imitate the tone of the high-pitched, epicene
voice which was the most remarkable of his physical
attributes. Forty-five years ago, enough time had elapsed
for the Southside Virginia Elijah, Patrick Henry, and his
chariot of fire to melt away from the sight of the populace
into what Prof. Tyndall calls "the infinite azure of the
past," but the mantle, that Henry dropped in his ascent
from his own shoulders upon those of Randolph, had too
recently fallen from the latter for Randolph not to be yet
a living presence. We cannot undertake to assert with our
fellow-coimtryman, Bouldin, that **Mr. Randolph was
perhaps the most impressive man that ever lived."*
Southside Virginia, after all, is but a small part of the entire
terrestrial globe, the canvass of imiversal history is very
densely peopled, and the assertion imposes entirely too
severe a strain upon the mental organs of memory
and comparison; but there can be no doubt that few
men have ever so completely enslaved the imagina-
tion of a people as did Randolph that of the people
among whom he lived. They felt in him such a degree
of curious interest as they felt in no other man: *'In
their views," as one of them has told us, Randolph
was **as prominent and necessary an object in our
human world as the sun in the solar system."^ ''All
the bastard wit of the country," Randolph once com-
plained, * * has been fathered on me. " ^ (a) Every word of
his speeches was followed by his constituents so intently
that some of them carried whole paragraphs from them in
their memories for years. His witticisms, his gibes, his
eloquent appeals, his pictorial imagery, his witty sayings
were in almost as general circulation among them as the
federal currency; and, if he had not been a man of genius,
« Botildin, lo. 'Id., 84. 3 Garland, v. i, preface vii.
100 John Randolph of Roanoke
with a training and facilities marvelously well adapted to
the oflBce of hitting their local convictions, predilections,
and prejudices between wind and water, his landed and
social importance, his strange aspect, his erratic bearing,
his pride and violence were enough in themselves to have
made him an object of insatiable wonder to them. From
first to last, he exerted a fascinating spell over them. Once
only was this spell suflBciently weakened to cost him his
seat in the House; and then, without any recantation or
apology on his part, it soon reasserted its sway as if it had
never been dissolved. The idea that Randolph secured
his election to Congress, term after term, by bullying the
young men and cajoling the old men in his District, is too
shallow on its face to require serious refutation. He was
again and again elected to Congress because the electorate
that elected him was limited to a small, intelligent body of
freeholders, who admired his talents too much to be influ-
enced by secondary considerations of any kind affecting
his general popularity, and who wished to be represented
in Congress by a man so truly typical of their own sec-
tional and class interests and aims; and because, before
Randolph's mind became chronically deranged in the latter
years of his life and both his body and soul steeped in their
bitter misery, his rare social gifts made him a welcome
companion at every place of public resort and an honored
guest in every conspicuous home of his District. The
scope of the social activities, which brought these gifts
into play during the relatively vigorous years of a life
which, like that of Alexander Pope, was *'one long dis-
ease,'* is fully disclosed by his Diary and letters. Like
all masterful public men, he asserted his will at times
imperiously, and more than once, under exceptional cir-
cumstances, even brutally. It must be admitted too that,
imder the viva voce mode of voting, which prevailed in
Virginia in Randolph's time, intimidation could be more
readily practiced at an election by an aggressive, overawing
Randolph's District loi
nattire than it could be in our day ; (a) but the idea that
Randolph coerced and coaxed his way into Congress
biennially, with the exception of two terms, for some 30
years rests upon nothing more satisfactory than the
assertions of poUtical or personal enmity, or the country-
side gossip which gave a sensational or exaggerated turn to
even the simplest things that such an original man as he
might do or say. No man, Randolph was in the habit
of declaring, ever had such constituents as he had had.
And the declaration was not far from the truth, when
tested by ordinary standards of popular attachment and
constancy; but it was still nearer the truth, when tested
by ordinary standards of popular curiosity and enthusiasm.
When the announcement had gone out in one of the
counties of Randolph's District that he would address the
People on the next County Court Day, the morning of
that day was sure to find the Court House green thronged
with a great mass of human beings, drained from all the
surrounding country, and tense with anxious expectancy
until the stir and murmur, which spring up in a crowd —
no man can ever tell how — just before what it awaits
breaks upon its vision, apprised even the dullest of them
that their political idol, the far-famed descendant of King
Powhatan and William Randolph of Turkey Island,
astride one of his fleet thoroughbreds, or behind one of his
sure-footed roadsters, with his favorite negro servant,
John, on horseback forty paces in his rear, was nearing the
spot; though still invisible to their straining sight, and
that he would soon be speaking to them in the shrill voice
distinguishable above the uproar of a thousand throats,
and yet so musical that it made music of the commonest
words. Once arrived, his coming was followed by a
surging movement of the multitude towards and around
him as if no man among them had ever seen him before,
and their eyes were cups to drink with. And, when con-
ducted by an escort of elderly retainers, he ascended the
102 John Randolph of Roanoke
rostrum, and removed his hat from his head, and made
his graceful bow, all business in the village was suspended,
its ** stores" were closed, and proprietors, clerks, and cus-
tomers alike poured out of them pell-mell, and hurried
across the muddy or dusty highway to swell the auditory
already assembled about the speaker. Under such cir-
cumstances, oratory became a fixed institution in the
habits of a community; not only a powerful agency of
popular education but of popular entertainment as well.
A speaker must have been an inert lump of clay, indeed,
not to have imbibed some additional inspiration on such
an occasion, and the memory of an audience must have
been like shifting sand not to have retained a lasting
impression of much that was said on it. Crowded centres
of population had their theatres, their concerts, their
lyceums, their many other sources of popular recreation
and enjoyment. The theatre, the lyceum of Virginia
was the court-green rostrum. Hence it was, along with
the free spirit of her people, and the proud position that
she had in the earlier stages of our national existence,
because of her preponderant wealth and population, that
the art of public speaking was so generally practiced, and
so highly prized, and early attained such a singular pitch
of perfection within her limits. "The Virginians are the
best orators I ever heard," was the conclusion that the
youthful William EUery Channing, who was to acquire
fame as an orator himself, reached when he was writing
from Virginia to New England in 1799.^ More remark-
able still, in his letters, the Rev. James Waddell Alexander,
who was as good a judge of eloquence as any man of his
time, says: "I have always considered this region of
Virginia [Southside Virginia] more favorable to the highest
popular eloquence than any other. There are twenty men
in this county [Charlotte] whose elocution is enviable.''^
» Memoir of Wm. EUery Channing, v. i , 96.
* March 10, 1842, 40 Km.' Familiar Letters, v. i, 351.
Randolph's District 103
Suffert in una civitate esse unum rhetorem, was a cynical
maxim that found little favor in Virginia. Towards the
end of his life, the homage shown Randolph by his con-
stituents became so eager at times as to irritate him. **I
am neither a lion nor a tiger, '* was his impatient rebuke
from the depths of his carriage, on one occasion, to a gaping
throng, which had collected about it, when he was leaving
the door of the tavern at Charlotte Court House.' In
1833, when his carriage came to a stop in front of the tavern
at Buckingham Court House, it was immediately sur-
rounded by a dense crowd, and the circumstance was so
annoying to him that when his servant was in the act of
opening the door of the carriage, so that he could issue
from it, he abruptly commanded him to let it remain
closed until the crowd should retire; adding that he was
no wild beast, intended for public exhibition.^ To this
intense, not to say morbid, interest in Randolph, when he
was living, was due the fact that the popular memory in
his District remained such a rich treasury of information
in regard to him so many years after his death.
Randolph's Congressional District was composed of
Buckingham and Cumberland Counties, which are bound-
ed on the north by the James River; Charlotte County,
which is bounded on the south by the Staunton River, and
Prince Edward County, which lies between Charlotte
County and the two counties first named. From its
northernmost point of extension to its southernmost was
about 78 miles; and its total area was 2,159 square miles. ^
With the exception of some level stretches here and there,
its surface is fretted by the last undulations of the Alle-
ghanies before they flatten out into the great coastal plain
of Tidewater Virginia; but only in Willis' mountain, the
lonely cone in Buckingham County, which teased the eye
of Jefferson at Monticello, forty miles away, with its optical
» Scrap Bcok of Ellen Bruce Baylor. * Bouldin, 161
i Martin's Gazetteer , 133, 145, 160, 265.
104 John Randolph of Roanoke
vagaries, Ferguson's mountain in the same cotmty, and
several other less well-known elevations does this surface
assiune a mountainous character. Aside from certain
sterile and desolate ridges in Buckingham Cotmty, and
some other more or less haggard tracts of cotmtry, the soil
of this territory readily responds to good treatment. In
Randolph's time, as today, a vast portion of it was covered
with woods, and it is most abundantly watered by many
copious streams ; the James on its way to Turkey Island,
the home of William Randolph, and Cawsons, the birth-
place of John Randolph himself; the Staimton, on which
Roanoke was situated; the Appomattox, which flows by
Bizarre, Matoax, and Cawsons, the first three homBs of
Randolph ; Slate River, which rises in the southern part of
Buckingham Cotmty and empties into the James 63 miles
above Richmond ; Willis' River, which rises in the southern
part of Buckingham County and joins the James 23 miles
below the mouth of Slate River;" and the Falling River,
which debouches into the Staunton hard by Red Hill, the
home of Patrick Henry. Smaller streams are Great
Guinea and Angle Creeks in Ctunberland Cotmty; BuflFaloe
Creek in Prince Edward Cotmty, on which Judith Ran-
dolph owned a tract of land; and the Little Roanoke,
which was the western boimdary of Randolph's Lower
Quarter at Roanoke; Cub Creek, near which was situated
Cub Creek Church that was one of the advance posts of
early Virginia Presbyterianism, and was at one time imder
the charge of Dr. Archibald Alexander, and, at another,
of Dr. John Holt Rice; and Turnip Creek, which finds its
way into the Staunton across alluvial meadows, almost as
rich as the delta of the Mississippi, that were, after Ran-
dolph's time, but, before the abolition of Southern slavery,
to become the basis of the Statmton Hill plantation, owned
and organized by Charles Bruce, the son of James Bruce, of
Halifax County, Va., one of Randolph's friends, which was
s Martin* sGoMeUeer, 134.
Randolph's District 105
long a typical example in the South of what Industry and
Social Life, under the institution of Slavery, were at their
best. We are thus particular in mentioning these different
streams because almost all of them were associated with
the life of Randolph in some personal way or other, and
because the larger of them, before the construction of the
James River and Kanawha Canal and steam railroads,
performed a highly important ftmction for the people in
Randolph's District in furnishing them with highways for
the exportation and importation of commodities. Moist
river and creek bottoms, enriched by the nitrogen and lime,
brought down by freshets from forest floors and limestone
ledges, were also things of no mean importance in commu-
nities, too sparsely settled for intensive agriculture. The
James River was navigable by bateaux from Buckingham
County to Richmond; WilUs' River (or canal rather it
should have been called), though it never leaves the two
counties of Buckingham and Ciunberland in its course from
its fountains, in the southern part of Buckingham county,
to its point of junction with the James, would appear to
have been navigable by bateaux for a distance of sixty-five
miles from its mouth;" the Appomattox, a narrow, but
comparatively deep, stream, was navigable by bateaux
from Farmville to Petersburg, a distance of some eighty-
eight miles; and the Staunton was navigable by similar
craft from Roanoke to Weldon in North Carolina. The
significance that such streams had in the economic life of
Southside Virginia may be inferred, when the reader is told
that, at one time, the project was entertained of making a
navigable water course of even Buflaloe Creek, an insig-
nificant stream, in conjunction with the Little Roanoke,
and was abandoned only when an engineer had made a
survey, and reported that it was impracticable.* The
climate of Randolph's District, especially that of its south-
em end, is considerably softer than the climate of Northern
' Martin's Gauiieer, 134. ' Id., 265.
io6 John Randolph of Roanoke
Virginia. Randolph seems to have had no fondness for
flowers. Beyond his request that Dr. Dudley should
plant at Roanoke two common specimens of the flora of
Charlotte County, there is not a reference in his Diary or
letters to one, so far as we can recall. To him, therefore,
we cannot look for any of those tell-tale jottings about the
vernal return of bud or bloom, which in writings, fuller of
the sap of nature, disclose so much in regard to climate.
The fact is all the more remarkable, as, in both his Diary
and other journals, he kept an elaborate thermometrical
record of the weather for weeks at a time. We only know
that Randolph had no good opinion of the Southside
Virginia climate; notwithstanding the fact that it is cer-
tainly, as compared with climates in similar latitudes,
notably free from rawness in winter and mugginess in
summer. In a letter to his niece, on one occasion, he
mentioned a recent fall of 14*^ in the thermometer, at
Roanoke, and said: "Such a climate may suit red men
but not white ones. Even for blacks, it is too cold in
winter. The sensible cold here far exceeds that of Si-
beria. '' ' In a subsequent letter to Francis Walker Gilmer,
he sa^^s: ** Milton's description of Hell in the second book
is just suited to the climate " [of Roanoke] ; * and, in another
letter to Gilmer, favorably contrasting the constant heat
of Arabia and Guinea, bad as it was, with violent fluctua-
tions of temperature in ''Massachusetts Bay,*' he ob-
ser\xs: " I am more and more convinced that this climate
will arfiply avenge upon the whites the cruel wrongs done
upon the red men. '* ^ After his return from Russia, in one
of his letters to Andrew Jackson, he said that he was tiun-
ing all his property into money as fast as he could that he
might escape the next year, if he should survive, from a
climate worse than that of Russia. ** A climate where we
have a Greenland winter and an African summer in lati-
' Aug. 9, 1823, Bryan MSS. 'July 2, 1825, Bryan MSS.
3 July 30, 1825, Bryan MSS.
Randolph's District 107
tude 37® north — ^the latitude of Algiers. ' ' ' And, when the
author was a boy, it was said in Charlotte County that
Randolph once declared that to live in such a climate as
that of Southside Virginia was like being in a great ham-
mock, swung backwards and forwards between the Torrid
and Arctic Zones. **This day must have emigrated from
the Northwest coast of Scotland," he once wrote to Dr.
Dudley, from Bowling Green, Virginia. ^ But Randolph,
the reader will remember, was a man without a skin ; and
his health, besides, was so delicate that he was for that
reason too a poorer judge of temperature than the ordi-
nary individual.
Indeed, it is not to Randolph in any respect that we
should go for appreciation of the physical features of
Southside Virginia. He was not insensible to natural
beauty. Far from it. It is said that he once spent the
night upon the Peaks of Otter, in Bedford County, Vir-
ginia, for the purpose of seeing the sunrise of the next
morning, and that when, with the return of dawn, the most
splendid object in the field of human vision rose above the
earth-rim in the glorious vesture of its first hour, and began
its ascent of the Heavens, he turned to his Servant and
charged him '* never from that time to believe anyone who
told him there was no God. ''^ (a) The story is not im-
probable; for we know from one of Randolph's journals
that he did visit the Peaks of Otter on Sept. 1 1, 1818,-* and
the exhortation is quite in his vein; but the loneliness of
his life at Roanoke subdued his feelings too closely to its
own sombre cast to leave him much disposition to admire
its natural setting. The physical beauty of the country
south of the James, however, does not lack its votaries.
In his Famous Americans of Recent Times, James Parton
speaks of it as ** an enchanting region, '' and says that **a
» Dec. 19, 1 83 1, Jackson Papers, v. 79, Libr. Cong.
'Letters to a Y. R., 139.
iHist Colls, of Va., by Henry Howe, 190. ^ Libr. Cong.
io8 John Randolph of Roanoke
country better adapted to all good purposes of man, nor
one more pleasing to the eye, hardly exists on earth.**'
But it must not be forgotten that he was writing shortly
after the Civil War — ^that mighty refracting mirror — ^^and
he is praising the country partly for the purpose of more
effectively belittling its inhabitants; and it must be con-
fessed, too, that, if his praise was intended to apply to the
whole of the territory south of the James, it is not praise
but flattery; for, after the last ripples set up by the Alle-
ghanies die out in their eastward movement, much of the
face of the land becomes very flat, lifeless, and dreary, and,
some of it mere pine barrens. Limit Parton*s tribute,
however, to the more highly-favored portions of Southside
Virginia, such, for instance, as the Valley of the Staunton,
from Brookneal in Campbell County to Roanoke, and it is
near enough the truth to pass muster creditably. The
broken territory in Southside Virginia is, naturally speak-
ing, truly a fair land; a land of bold hills, peaceful valleys,
and sylvan labyrinths, and of life-giving rivers, creeks, and
** branches**; a land where the fervor of a hot sun unites
with an abundant rainfall and a kindly soil to reward
every earnest effort of the husbandman. The only serious
blights upon it in Randolph's time were slavery and the
mosquito; the slavery which in 1831 produced the Nat
Turner insurrection that in the brief space of a few horns
resulted in the butchery of more than three score white
men, women, and children; and the mosquito which made
every mill-pond a community grievance. Through the
letters of Dr. James Waddell Alexander, we obtain some
very interesting ghmpses of natural conditions in Char-
lotte County during the latter years of Randolph's life.
On Feb. 16, 1827, he wrote to Dr. Hall, his Northern
correspondent: **The Crocus and Persian Iris are in
bloom and the frogs begin to sing, so that you may judge
of the difference of climate. " ^ Of course, this was a pre-
»P. 184. »V. 1,97.
Randolph's District 109
codous season. And on March 13, 1827, he wrote to the
same person:
"We are now enjojring spring in all its sweetness. I am
sitting with opened windows into which the *Sweet South* is
breathing. Our gardens are redolent with vernal fragrance,
the time of the singing of birds has come, and no country can
boast of more charms in this respect than Virginia. The wood
lark and the mocking bird are songsters of the first order.
Read a graphic description of the latter in Wilson's Orni-
thology. They are sometimes taken to the North in cages,
but in that case you seldom hear the rich gushing of their
natural strains, as when they sit among the hawthorn bushes
and pour out melody for hours. The plows are all now in
motion."*
And how, indeed, like the breath of the Sweet South
stealing over a bank of violets, and bringing back the sen-
sations and emotions of youth to even the most palsied
consciousness, is this Springtide letter too :
" I must pause to tell you (what you certainly could never
find out for yourself) that the birds are making melody this
day in a manner more exquisite than usual. Be it known to
you as a matter of the utmost importance that I am a most
enthusiastic admirer of the singing of birds, and that I live
in a region where I enjoy this sort of pleasure in perfection.
I often stop for half an hour to listen to that most capricious,
sweet, jovial, fascinating musician, the mocking bird. What-
ever may be the case with the European mimic, it is by no
means true of ours that he has no originality. I have never
heard the song of any bird comparable to his, and I watch his
habits very closely. He is to be found about sunrise upon
the topmost twig of the highest tree, swelling and throbbing
with the gush of melody, pouring out a stream of song,
infinitely varied, of clear, liquid notes, trilled with an inimi-
table rapidity and wayward changes. No other bird ever
excites my laughter, but his imitations are so exact, and so
'P. 9S.
no John Randolph of Roanoke
surprise the other birds, that I am often beguiled into a hearty
laugh in my solitary walks. And I have other favorites. The
beautiful redbird I have never seen elsewhere. It is of alight,
taper shape, of the deepest crimson, except a circle of black
velvet on each side of the face. The melancholy whip-poor-
will, which begins its monotonous cry at twilight, though its
note is not pleasing, has the power of making me listen often
for a long time; and even the buzzard, that foulest of fowls, has
such a grace and majesty in his sailing among the clouds that
I almost forgive him his diet and his stench.**'
The face of nature has changed but little in Charlotte
County since Randolph's death. So, for our purpose,
there is no reason why we should not also quote in this
connection from the Familiar Letters of Dr. Alexander,
written after Randolph's death. On March lo, 1842, he
wrote to Dr. Hall :
"The weather is mild but pluvious. There have been gx-eat
freshes here, perhaps 30 during the season. Peas are quite
high ; peach and plum trees in blossom some days. Birds are
pairing, and their number on this estate [Ingleside] is remark-
able. Mr. Carrington saw four wild turkey cock on his
grounds a day or two ago.*'^
More than 10 years later, Dr. Alexander wrote on the
20th of April :
"The spring no longer coquets but embraces with Oriental
voluptuousness. Yesterday, would have done for Florida.
In a north porch, in shade, the glass stood at 95® all the after-
noon. This morning it is less burning but still hot. When I
arrived in Virginia, the spring was still behind, but, for two
days, we have almost seen it growing. . . . Before breakfast,
I counted 14 species of birds known to me, and two unknown.
There are about 50 mocking birds in and about this lawn, and
40 robins were counted on the grass at once.*'^
» Apr. 10, 1827, V. 1, 102-103. * V. I, 350.
i Apr. 20, 1855, V. I, 207.
Randolph's District 1 1 1
In a letter to the author, dated Oct. 12, 1919, William
Beebe, the brilliant naturalist of our own time, informs
him that, some years ago, he drew up a list of 76 different
species of birds which he had noted at the home in Char-
lotte County, about 13 or so miles from Roanoke, of Mr.
Henry C. Rice, the son of Dr. Izard Rice, who left behind
him an interesting paper relating to Randolph. All of
these species were, doubtless, observed by Randolph at
Roanoke. In July, 181 8, he wrote to Francis W. Gilmer:
**I wish you could come and listen to my concert; it is far
superior to Mrs. French's or Mr. Philipps' ; I would show you
too the invisible bird (the woodthrush), as a certain philosopher
[Jefferson] in his manner calls it. There are dozens on my
lawn besides doves, summer red-birds, cardinals, etc., etc., to
say nothing of squirrels and hares. Now and then a red fox;
sometimes a gray one is to be seen at the gate, but the wolf
never."'
A few years later, Randolph wrote to his niece : * ' I
assure you my shades are as cool, as free from dust, as
Bush Hill [the residence of Judge Coalter near Richmond] ;
and as for noises, I hear none but the warbling of the birds
and the barking of the squirrels around my windows."*
The population of Randolph's District in 1800, the year
after his first election to Congress, was 21,253 whites, 598
free blacks, and 24,251 slaves, or a total of 46,102 persons;
in 1830, the last census year before his death, it was 21 ,853
whites, 1283 free blacks, and 36,264 slaves, or a total
of 59,400 persons. Its density, therefore, for the 2,159
square miles over which it was diffused, was in 1800 about
22 persons to the square mile, and, in 1830, about 27. The
figures that we give also show that, during the 30 years
between 1800 and 1830, the rate of increase among the
whites was about 3%, among the free blacks about 1 14%,
and among the slaves about 49%. Ominous percentages
« Bryan MSS. 'Roanoke, June 12, 1821, Brjan MSS.
112 John Randolph of Roanoke
over which Randolph must have often brooded in his
hours of depression at Roanoke ! Since his day, the popu-
lation in his District has undergone a sensible decline;
being less by 4,950 inhabitants in 1 910 than it was in 1830,
80 years before — a fact due partly to the terrible indus-
trial stagnation, produced by a variety of special causes,
which prevailed in Virginia between 1820 and 1830; the
lure of the Virgin West, and the feverishly active cotton-
fields of the South Atlantic and Gulf States, during the
decades between 1830 and i860; the havoc and derange-
ment occasioned by the Civil War, and the competition
with the rich lands of our own Western territory and of
foreign lands opened up by the steam car and the steam-
ship; but, above all, to the mildew of der Ewige Neger,
first as an ignorant, listless, and immoral slave, in on^ sense
wholly impotent, and yet powerful enough to assert his
influence over the very speech of his owner's children,
and, afterwards, as a freedman, free from his former mas-
ter but still enslaved to his former self, (a) Today, in this
region, the salutary transition from the old Plantation
System, with its slave or hired labor and other features,
to small tenant or proprietary holdings, which has been
going on steadily for many years, is at last complete, and
there is good reason to believe that, in process of time,
a new industrial and social organization, built up exclu-
sively around the principle of selfhelp, as all truly thrifty
and lasting social and industrial organizations are, instead
of that of feudal overlordship, noble and gracious in many
respects as its spirit was, will take the place of the one that
existed in Randolph's time, and even for a considerable
period after the Civil War; and that the territory, repre-
sented by Randolph in Congress, will cease to wear the
look that it has worn for so many years of a sick stag
shedding its antlers or of a human being overtaken by the
decrepitude of age before he has attained his majority.
*'The influence of slavery, united to the English char-
Randolph's District 1 13
acter, explains the manners and the social condition of the
Southern States."' The truth of this dictum of De
Tocqueville was aptly exemplified in Randolph's District.
The leading landowners of that part of Virginia, such as
the Randolphs, the Harrisons, the Skipwiths, and the
Carringtons, were merely English gentry modified by the
plantation. Edward Dillon and Dr. Thomas Robinson,
of Prince Edward County, two of Randolph's friends,
who were British-bom, fitted into the social life of South-
side Virginia as smoothly as if they had been native Vir-
ginians, Writing to Dr. Hall from England in 1857, Dr.
James Waddell Alexander said that the general look of the
English lords reminded him of Virginia gentlemen ; quite
so, as far as manner was concerned; only the Virginia
gentlemen were not so neat in point of dress as most of
them. * The resemblance had been previously noted by
Randolph himself. In a letter to his niece, written in
England on May 27, 1822, he said: **The higher ranks,
a few despicable and despised fashionables excepted,
are as unpretending and plain as our old-fashioned Virgin-
ia gentlemen whom they greatly resemble."^ Mutatis
mutandis, the ambitions, tastes, and pastimesof the Virgin-
ia gentleman in Southside Virginia, or any other portion
of slave-holding Virginia, were all those of the English
country gentleman. To own and manage a plantation,
well stocked with negroes and spirited horses, in the
heart of some leafy wilderness, to hand aroimd the plate
in his roadside church on Sunday, as vestr5anan or elder,
to sit upon the bench of his county court, or to represent
his cotmty in the State Legislature, or his District in Con-
gress, and, when not engrossed with these cares, to
fox-htmt, shoot quail or "partridges," as he called them,
» De Tocqueville, v. i, 36, Cambridge, 1864 (4th ed.)-
» London, July, 3, 1857, 40 Yrs' Familiar Letters, by Dr. J. W. Alex-
ander (N. Y., i860), V. 2, 246.
s Garland, v. 2, 184.
▼OL. n — S
114 John Randolph of Roanoke
and other game, frequent horse races, and dine with
his friends were the objects which he usually placed
before himself as promising a human being the highest
degree of gratification and happiness. In the breast of
every such Virginian, at the beginning of life, if he was
not so fortunate as to inherit, or expect to inherit, such a
plantation, was the resolve to realize his ideal of perfect
felicity by sooner or later buying one and spending the
remainder of his days on it in the enjoyment of the ru-
ral pleasures, which are among the few human pleasures
that leave no bitter taste in the mouth. When his
object was attained, the life he led was certainly an
agreeable one ; for it was even agreeable enough to make
John Mitchel, the Irish patriot, zealous as he was for
Irish freedom, sigh for a "good plantation well stocked
with fat, healthy negroes.''*
The class, of which we speak, had its share of human
infirmities, of course, but it can be truly said of it that it
is not dependent upon its own commendation for a proper
acknowledgment of its conspicuous virtues. Referring
to the landed gentry of Virginia in 1789, Anburey says:
''The first class [of the Virginians] consists of gentlemen of
the best families and fortunes which are more respectable and
numerous than in any other province; for the most part they
have had a liberal education, possess a thorough knowledge of
the world, with great ease and freedom in their manners and
conversation. Many of them keep their carriages, have
handsome services of plate, and, without exception, keep
their studs as well as sets of handsome carriage horses.***
It was to this class that Randolph himself belonged;
and, while the stately tidewater opulence which Anburey
describes, was out of keeping with the simpler social con-
ditions and the more modest measure of individual wealth,
on the whole, which afterwards obtained in Randolph's
» Life of Quincy^ 24.
* Travels Through the Interior Parts of America, Anburey, 372,
Randolph's District 115
District in Randolph's time, it was not sufficiently so to
render the description altogether inapplicable to it. The
four counties, which constituted Randolph's District, were
it shotdd be remembered, settled after Tidewater Virginia,
and never became endowed with such a degree of wealth,
or permeated with such a degree of aristocratic pride, as
the riparian communities on the James. The whole
framework of their social organization, though essentially
the same, was distinctly barer and less pretentious, if, for
no other reason, because their struggle with primeval
nature came along later.
Anburey aJso noted that all Virginians were fond of
horses, from Thomas Mann Randolph, of Tuckahoe, who
built a stable for his favorite Shakspeare, with a recess
in it for the bed of the negro who kept watch over him day
and night, * to the humblest member of ** the middling and
lower classes, " who gratified his passion for horseflesh by
attending the ''quarter races," which went on alpiost
unremittingly at the cross-roads tavern, or ordinary, as it
was called in Virginia — a name which Anburey thought
fully deserved. ^ That this fondness for horses still con-
tinued to exist in Southside Virginia throughout Ran-
dolph's life, we need no better proof than is to be found
in the assiduous attention which he gave to his own stud
at Roanoke, and the celebrity which his friend, Wm. R.
Johnson, the famous turfman, who resided at Oakland,
in Chesterfield County, acquired throughout the United
States. During Johnson's career, Petersburg, which was
but a few miles from Oakland, was one of the most popular
racing centers in the country. *' In spite of the Virginian
love for dissipation, the taste for reading is commoner
there among men of the first class than in any other part
of America," declared the Due de Liancourt at the close
of the Eighteenth Century. This statement anyone, who
has read the remarkable debates in the Virginia Consti-
« Anburey, supra, 360. ' Id., 393.
ii6 John Randolph of Roanoke
tutional Convention of 1829-30, can readily credit. All
of the first library, accumulated by Randolph at Bizarre,
which appears to have been quite a valuable one, was
destroyed by fire ' ; but, at his death, he had accumulated
at Roanoke one of the most valuable private libraries in
the United States. '*I blush for my own people when I
compare the selfish prudence of a Yankee with the gener-
ous confidence of a Virginian,*' wrote Wm. Ellery Chan-
ning in 1799 from Richmond, when he was teaching in the
family of David Meade Randolph :
"Here I find great vices but greater virtues than I left
behind me. There is one single trait which attaches me to
the people I live with more than all the virtues of New Eng-
land— they love money less than we do; they are more dis-
interested; their patriotism is not tied to their purse'strings.
Could I only take from the Virginians their sensuality and
their slaves, I should think them the greatest people in the world.
As it is, with a few great virtues, they have innumerable vices. * ' '
Generous words on the whole — all the more generous
because of the crust of prejudice through which they had
to break their way — that might well have elicited a re-
sponsive tribute from some Southern pen to the sterling
virtues of the New England character. Laying aside all
invidious comparisons, the almost unmurmuring fortitude,
with which Virginia bore the load of restrictive fatuity,
imposed by Jefferson upon her industry, and the glow of
resentful patriotism, which, during the war of 1812, was
too much for even Randolph's prestige in his District,
would appear to bear out the general tenor of what
Channing says in one respect. Forty years later, William
CuUen Bryant, another New Englander, expressed the
opinion that '* whatever may be the comparison in other
respects, the South certainly has the advantage over us
in point of manners. " ^
« J. R/s Diary. * Memoir of W, E. C, v. i, 82.
*Hist, of U, 5., by Adams, v. i, 132
Randolph's District 1 1 7
"The time has not yet come,*' said Josiah Quincy in 1892,
"to estimate with impartiality the class of Southern gentle-
men, to which Randolph belongs. Many of them were men of
great ability and singular fascination of manner.**' "There
is a suavity and grace in the manners of gentlemen of the
first rank in this state and a peculiar fascination in their
elocution," wrote Dr. James Waddell Alexander to Dr. Hall
from Petersburg, "which you will understand better if you
have ever seen Tazewell, Clay or John Randolph.**^ (a)
Of the upper-class Virginians, who resided in Ran-
dolph's District and in other parts of Southside Virginia
adjacent to it, we obtain many pleasing views in his
journals and letters. It is a fact not usually realized that,
while the primary education of the general mass of the
Virginia people before the Civil War fell lamentably below
the standard at which Jefferson, with his catholic sympa-
thies, aimed, and Massachusetts actually attained,
academic and collegiate education was more conmion in
Virginia than in any other State of the Union. ^ After the
Revolution, young men in Southside Virginia, of the same
dass as Randolph, were usually educated at William and
Mary, Princeton, and Hampden-Sidney College, in Prince
Edward Coimty. To the latter institution, especially,
which has been maintained, at times, under circtmistances
of extreme discouragement, the people of Southside
Virginia are deeply indebted. How true this is a brief
glance at the names of the many distinguished and useful
men who derived their intellectual nurture from its teach-
ing will clearly establish. After leaving college, South-
side Virginia contemporaries of Randolph, who occupied
the same social station as himself, settled down, some to
purely professional pursuits, but the majority wholly, or,
in connection with some other vocation, to the life of a
planter in the tranquil homes, scattered along the banks
» P. 228. 'Jan. 27, 1826, 40 Yrs/ Familidr Letters, v. i, 93.
iOld Chufches, etc.f of Va., by Meade, 90 (note); Thii Cotton Kingdom^
Yale University Press, by Wm, E. Dodd, 1 11 (note).
ii8 John Randolph of Roanoke
of the James, the Appomattox and the Staunton, which
were, in most instances, the abodes of a strong religious
faith ; of an unsullied domestic purity and fidelity ; and of a
manly dignity and simplicity of bearing in all the ordinary
social relationships of life, and, as a rule, of a just sense of
responsibility too for the servile beings clustered about
them. These houses for the most part were flimsy and
plain, in comparison with the *' magnificent" mansions in
eastern Virginia which excited the admiration of de
Chastellux, ' (a) ; and the best of them would be regarded as
very modest dwellings in our time in point of scope and
design ; and, in conveniences, according to modern stand-
ards, they were almost wholly wanting. But it is land
and caste, and not necessarily splendid houses or a fat
purse, which make a true aristocracy, and, separated as
this class of landowners was, by the impassable gulf of
slavery, from the blacks, and by marked social distinctions,
based on education and similar principles, from the less
fortunate whites, they were a true aristocracy in spirit;
though too amenable to the bit of American constitutional
restraints ever to get out of friendly and sympathetic
touch with the poorer whites. So far as wealth was con-
cerned, their good fortune was mainly specious. Slave
labor was sadly deficient, of course, in intelligence, energy,
and zeal. In consequence, the life of the master was
likely to be one long, daily conflict with inefficiency and
wastefulness. If he was too lenient, nothing, or next to
nothing, was done; if he relied too far upon work extorted
by fear, he incurred the reprobation of his more conscien-
tious and easy-going neighbors. It was a saying of
Charles Bruce, of Charlotte County, who was the owner
of many slaves, that *' slavery cheated the master with the
semblance of wealth." *'A Virginia estate is plenty of
serfs, plenty of horses, but not a shilling"^ Randolph
« p. 162, V. 2.
« 40 Yrs/ Familiar Letters, by Dr. Alexander, v. i, 356.
Randolph's District 119
declared. During the industrial depression that existed
in Virginia between 1820 and 1840, he predicted that,
instead of the master advertising for the runaway slave,
the slave would soon be advertising for the runaway
master. There is a letter among the papers of Creed
Taylor from the widow of one of the Randolphs, requesting
him as her agent to discharge her debts when her tobacco
was sold, and **ask credit until harvest for 25 lbs. white
sugar."* The shortcomings of slave labor, the many
vicissitudes to which growing crops were subject, the
exacting spirit of hospitality, created by the free and easy
conditions of the old Virginia life, and, as the Virginia
planter thought, the tariff burdens, imposed upon agri-
ctdture by protection, in the interest of the Northern
manufacturer, at times, reduced even such wealthy
planters as Randolph himself to straitened circum-
stances. But, living as the Southside Virginia planter
did in the country, and blessed as he was with a genial
sun, and a kindly soil and numerous servants, maintain-
able at small expense, and, in a position, too, as he was to
derive almost everything essential to human comfort or
convenience from his own property, in many respects, he
led a very care-free and delightful Ufe. If he did not
have much ready money, he had most of the things for
which ready money is reasonably craved ; if his dwelling
lacked many of the mechanical improvements and labor-
saving devices of modern times, the fact did not make
much difference when he had so many human mechanisms
about him to perform their functions. Writing to Dr.
Hall from Charlotte County on May 19, 1826, Dr.
James Waddell Alexander said :
"The manners of the people are plain, frank, hospitable
and independently proud of their Virginianism and all its
peculiarities. I suppose that no set of people in the world
live more at their ease, or indeed more luxuriously, so far as
« Green Creek, Feb. 20, 1810, Creed Taylor MSS.
120 John Randolph of Roanoke
eating and drinking are concerned. No farmer would think
of sitting down to dinner with less than fotir dishes of meat or
to breakfast without several different kinds of warm bread."'
Tested by the criteria of austerer societies, such pro-
fusion may not bespeak very high standards of frugality
and thrift, but it at least furnishes abundant indications
of the animal comfort which, since the day, when Sully
hoped to see a chicken in the pot of every peasant, has
been the prime requirement of human happiness.
But it would be a grave mistake to think of Randolph's
District and its circiunjacent territory as a region where
little or no thought was paid by anyone to prudential con-
siderations. Many of the Southside Virginians handled
little cash from year to year, but others were more fortu-
nate; and a certain amount of acciunulation went on in
Southside Virginia, as it does in every other community,
where ''gold, bright and yellow, hard and cold, heavy to
get and light to hold" is an object of desire. On March
22, 1 8 14, Randolph wrote to Josiah Quincy from Rich-
mond: **Some of our people, particularly in my quarter
of the country, are rich. " * Indeed, in the same letter, he
said that you could almost smell *'the nun and cheese,
and loaf, lump and muscovado sugar" out of which some
mushroom fortunes had sprung. Some four years later,
he wrote to Key from Roanoke :
**The state of manners around me cannot be paralleled, I
believe, on the face of the earth — all engaged in unremitting
devotion in the worship of
The least erected spirit
That fell from heaven.'
This pursuit I know to be general throughout the land, indeed,
I fear throughout the world; but elsewhere it is tempered by
« Forty Yrs, * Familiar Letters, by Dr. Alexander, v. i , 95.
. « Richmond, Mar. 22, 1814, Life of Quincy, p. 352.
Randolph's District 121
the spirit of society and even by a love of ostentation or of
pleasure."*
On May 19, 1826, writing to Dr. Hall from the vicinity
of Charlotte Court House, Dr. James Waddell Alexander
said: "This is a rich and fertile region, producing great
quantities of prime tobacco, and, of course, growing
wealthy."* James Bruce, who resided at Woodbum in
Halifax County, died in 1837 leaving a fortune of about
$2,000,000.00; a regal one for his day.^ It was derived
from the profits of both trade and planting, and was
perhaps one of the few private forttmes in the United
States at that time which at all approximated those of
Stephen Girard and John Jacob Astor. One of Ran-
dolph's neighbors tells us that Randolph declared on one
occasion at Roanoke, in the year 1832, that the Nullifica-
tion crisis was so menacing that he would not take Mr.
Girard *s or Mr. Bruce's bond for i8c. ^ It is comparatively
easy to see how Girard could have amassed his great for-
tune in Commerce, in such a city as Philadelphia, or John
Jacob Astor hi^ in the Fur Trade, but that James Bruce
should have acquired a fortune of about $2,000,000, in the
early part of the 19th century, in such a thinly settled,
wholly agrarian, country as that traversed by the Staunton
River, is a thing that some competent biographer might
well undertake to explain. If tradition may be believed,
sagacity, integrity, and an equable temper were the main
factors that entered into his success; but a highly-devel-
oped instinct of prudence seems to have had something to
do with it too. '* I am fond, " he wrote on one occasion to
a correspondent, ** of taking two securities to a bond.'** (a)
« Garland, v. 2, 95.
*40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters , v. i, 94.
» Proceedings in matter of Estate of Jas. Bruce, Clerk's Office, HoustoOt
Va.
4 Bouldin, 109.
•July 6, 1829, J. B. to Parker M. Rice, James Bruce MSS.
122 John Randolph of Roanoke
speaking of James Bruce, as he lived in the year 1827,
Dr. James Waddell Alexander says in one of his letters
to Dr. Hall:
**I have just returned from Halifax. . . . My visit was
principally to the family of Mr. Bruce to which I beg leave to
introduce you. His house is noted for its hospitality, and
presents to the bon vivant as great temptations as can well be
found in Virginia. At Mr. Bruce's, we seldom sat down to
table during the week I spent there with less than 10
strangers."*
And Dr. Alexander adds: ** I also visited Gen. Edward
C. Carrington, who has a seat upon Dan River (which
with the Staunton forms the Roanoke). . . . He is a
scholar and a gentleman and has large possessions."
Berry Hill, the seat of General Carrington, was afterwards
purchased before the Civil War, by James C. Bruce, the
son of the James Bruce just mentioned, and the home
built by him is still standing; and, with its imposing
Doric front, flanking subsidiary structures and other
striking features, is one of the stateliest and handsomest
monuments of the Slave Era in the South. It and Staun-
ton Hill, the home of Charles Bruce, in Charlotte County,
built in 1848, are perhaps the most interesting relics in
Southside Virginia at the present time of that Era. The
display of silver in these two houses would compare favor-
ably with any in the United States today, except in the
very wealthiest homes ; and the items of silver in the Berry
Hill collection even included silver bedroom wash basins
and toilet articles.* Another spacious and imposing
mansion in the region, in which Randolph resided, was
Prestwould, in Mecklenburg County, the home of Sir
Peyton Skipwith, the father of St. George Tucker's second
wife. Each of these three celebrated mansions stood out
' Feb. 16, 1827, 40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, v. i, 97.
' Historic Va. Homes, by Robt. A. Lancaster, Jr., 435.
Randolph's District 123
in alto relievo from its primitive enviromnent upon a back-
ground of thousands of acres of land. The estate in
Amelia County, to which William B. Giles retired in 1 815,
when sick and in political eclipse, is thus described by
D. R, Anderson in his biography of Giles:
'* His spacious plantation of 3,000 acres, with its comfortable
mansion, furnished in solid mahogany, adorned with costly
silver plate, and equipped with its bountiful supply of stock,
shops, mills, dairies and bams, afforded the conveniences and
distractions suited for the relief of a wearied body and mind."'
"Rich," too, if Dr. James Waddell Alexander was not
wrong, was more than one branch of the Venable family
of Prince Edward County.* Banister Lodge, in Halifax
County, one of the Clark homes, where Randolph was
occasionally a guest; Ingleside, near Charlotte Court
House, built in 18 10 by Col. Thomas Read; and Green
Hill, the home of the Pannills, in Campbell County, are
good specimens of the more substantial homes of the
Southside Virginia planter in Randolph's time.^ But
houses like these were quite exceptional. As a general
thing, the homes in Randolph's District of even the most
prominent members of his class had nothing about them
to attract the eye either in point of magnitude or archi-
tectural finish ; though in the vicinity of Petersburg there
were "not a few very splendid mansions," if Dr. James
Waddell Alexander has not lauded them too highly.^
Indeed, some homes in Southside Virginia, that were the
seats of a refined and generous hospitality, would not now
be considered good enough, in respect to either size or
external pretensions, for the superintendent of one of our
city parks, or the lodge keeper of one of our opulent mer-
' Wtn, Branch Giles, by Dice Robins Anderson, 210.
^40 Yrs/ Familiar Letters j by Dr. Alexander, v. i, 351.
* Lancaster's Historic Va. Homes, 438, 431, 421.
*40 Yrs,' Familiar Letters, v. i, 91.
124 John Randolph of Roanoke
chants. The truth of what we say will be verified if the
reader will turn to the illustrations of Oakland, one of the
Cocke homes; Clifton, one of the Harrison homes, and
Union Hill, one of the Page homes, in Cumberland County;
and Bellmont, one of the Cary homes, in Buckingham
County, all seats of families of the very highest social
position, which appear in Lancaster's Historic Virginia
Homes and Churches^; a memorable book that deserves
the frequent use and praise which it receives. It was not
the scale of these homes but the indwelling spirit, bred of
ancient family traditions and the genuine sense of superi-
ority, fostered by a highly stratified social order, which
made their inmates, however crude or cramped or com-
monplace their surroundings, quasi-aristocrats.
As such, they had, generally speaking, the virtues which
belong to a quasi-aristocracy ; a far better thing, at any
rate, than any legalized aristocracy; that is to say, pride
of character, a nice sense of honor, coiu-age, freedom from
sordid passions and vulgar propensities, courtesy and
chivalrous deference for womanhood. And their health-
ful, open-air pursuits and remoteness from the vanities
and dissipations of dty life, if nothing else, saved them, to
a great extent, from the enervation and sensual indulgence
which are only too likely to accompany real privilege.
What their women were at their best, no reader of ours,
familiar with Dr. George W. Bagby's Old Virginia Gen-
tleman^ or Thomas Nelson Page's inimitable In Ole Vir-
ginia, can be at a loss to know. No one, we suppose,
seriously disputes the fact that the standard of female
delicacy and honor, to which the lives of these women
were adjusted, was quite as high as any that has ever
existed in any civilized society. In saying this, we weigh
every word, nay, every syllable as deliberately as John
Randolph would have spoken them. The simile of the
Southern poet, Daniel B. Lucas, ''like violets our virgins
«Pp. 175, 186, 185, 187.
Randolph's District 125
pure and tender," haunts the memory of the Virginian,
because it is so true to the rich measure of chastity and
unselfish affection which inspired it, and we need not go
further than John Randolph himself for a winning picture
of what the Virginia matron with her distaff was. Speak-
ing in Congress of domestic manufactures, he is reported
to have said:
" I have, from a sort of obstinacy, that belongs to me, laid
aside the external use of these manufactures, but I am their
firm friend, and of the manufacturer also. They are no new
things to me; no Merino hobby of the day. I have known
them from my infancy. I have been almost tempted to
believe from the similarity of character and avocations that
Hector had a Virginian wife; that Lucretia herself — ^for she
displayed the spirit of a Virginian matron — was a Virginian
lady. Where were they found? Spinning among their
handmaids. What was the occupation of a Virginian wife ; her
highest ambition? To attend to her domestic and household
cares; to dispense medicine and food to the sick; to minister
to the comfort of her family, her servants and her poor
neighbors, where she had any. At the sight of such a woman,
his heart bowed down and did her reverence.**' (a)
And this it did in the case of Mrs. Tabb of Amelia
County.
"Poor Mrs. Tabb," he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough, "by
the death of Mrs. Coupland is saddled with two more helpless
grandchildren. She is the best and noblest creature living;
and I pray God that I may live once more to see her — a. true
specimen of the old Virginia matron.***
And we know no verses at which John Quincy Adams,
who was an able and accomplished statesman, but whose
poetry, as a rule, was as purely mechanical as the rhythm
of a creaking saw, ever tried his uninspired hand which
» A, of C, 1811-12, V. I, 542. 'Garland, v. 2, 275.
126 John Randolph of Roanoke
are more readable than these hitherto unpublished ones,
dated Aug. 7, 1841, in which, in his old age, he honored
with his homage the beautiful presence and lovely spirit
of a daughter of Southside Virginia :
<<
To Miss Ellen B— :
"Oh! wherefore, Lady was my lot
Cast from thine own so far;
Why, by kind fortune, live we not
Beneath one blessed star?
For had thy thread of life and mine
But side by side been spun;
My heart had panted to entwine
The tissue into one.
And why should time conspire with space
To sever us in twain?
And wherefore have I run my race
And cannot start again?
Thy thread how long! How short is mine!
Mine spent — thine scarce begun !
Alas ! we never can entwine
The tissue into one!
But take my blessing on thy name;
The blessing of a sire,
Not from a lover's furnace flame;
*Tis from a holier fire;
A thread unseen beside of thine
By fairy forms is spun,
And holy hands shall soon entwine
The tissue into one.''^
Next in the social scale, was the class of smaller land-
owners. They differed from the larger landowners only
in that they owned less land, were possessed of less edu-
cation, and enjoyed less social standing; but they owned
enough land to entitle them to exercise the franchise, and
' Autograph Book of Mrs. Jas. A. Seddon.
Randolph's District 127
their political and material interests were identical with
those of their wealthier and more consequential neighbors.
Then came the landless whites. They were poor and
illiterate, but, as a rule, independent in spirit, brave, and
honest, and as jealous of female chastity as their social
superiors. These virtues they were all the more sedulous
to cultivate because they alone, aside from the color of
their skins, estabUshed any real distinction between them
and the negro. Their position was, in many respects, a
pathetic one. They had no land themselves ; they shrank
from laboring side by side with the slaves of those who
had; and yet they lived in a community where agriculture
was for all practical purposes the sole breast of the State.
The result was that they were compelled to earn a more
or less precarious subsistence by turning their hands to
such uncertain tasks as they could. Since no one could
vote, who did not own 25 acres of land in the country,
or a city lot, they were without political power, and, for
that reason, as well as by reason of their poverty, were
regarded with derision by the negro as **po' white trash. "
(a) In the same sentence, in which the Due de Liancourt
speaks of the taste of the Virginians of the first class for
reading, he adds: **But the populace is perhaps more
ignorant there [Virginia] than elsewhere.'* It was cer-
tainly very illiterate in Randolph's District, owing to the
want of a proper system of general public education ; and
to him the barbarous vernacular of the unlettered portion
of his fellow-countrymen was always a source of amuse-
ment, slightly dashed with derision. In his Diary, he
entered the following specimens of their syntax and
pronunciation, under the head **Virginiana." No
Southside Virginian at any rate can read them today
without realizing that Virginia, even under the instruction
of her present public schools, is as slow to abjure her
native speech as Patrick Henry thought an American
ought to be to ** abjure his native victuals."
128 John Randolph of Roanoke
"I happened at Cumuli PumuU's, un thah wuz a purdi-
geous stawm that blow'd down all the cawn; but the Cumuli
give us a heap o* grog, un we sot it up agin.
The gals was agwine to meetin but they war abliged to
return back hoame.
Cufify bresh my coat might clean us I'm agwine a coatin
un doan tetch it with yo finguz a*ter you've done; else you'll
dutty it.
One chick'n done lawce he ma-am-y.
Cap'n Dannil mecks a famous crop.
A rapid price; i.e. high.
Cuwawtin (curvetting applied not to a horse but a man).
Skeerd (scared). Sheer (share). Cheer (chair).
He is in a proper fix (a bad situation).
He done (did) it out of ambition (i.e. malice — ^never used in
its proper sense) (** ambition, " Jul. Caesar, Shaksp.)
He is ruined by paying intruss (i.e. interest).
He attacted (attacked) him about it, and channelged (chal-
lenged) him."
And so on.
Nor were barbarisms like these always confined to the
lower classes of the whites. ** Whoever said 'wuz' but you
and the Chief Justice," Randolph exclaimed impatiently
on one occasion to a slothful woman who had insisted that
*'she wuz a-making" his coffee. He was referring, of
course, to John Marshall. '
Then came the free blacks. They occupied a position
as equivocal as that which produced the saying of the
Haitien blacks that a mulatto hates his father and despises
his mother. By the whites, though nominally free, he was
not allowed to vote, hold office, or testify against a white
man, and was accorded a far more limited measure of
social intercourse than the slave, with whom their relations
were often intimate and affectionate in the highest degree.
In other words, his freedom did not bring him any
closer to the superior race, though it sensibly separated
» The True Patrick Henrys by Geo. Morgan, 33.
Randolph's District 129
him from sympathetic communion with his own.
Under such circumstances, a free black foimd himself
greeted on every side by sullen brows and averted looks,
and he would have had more moral and intellectual
stamina than the white man himself, if he had not fre-
quently become more or less of a thief and a vagabond.
Speaking of the slaves, mantunitted by Richard Ran-
dolph, and relying upon a history of them, published by
a Col. Madison, Dr. James Waddell Alexander says:
"They have almost become extinct; those who remain are
wandering and drunken thieves, degraded below the level
of humanity and beyond the reach of gospel means."'
This description, we are satisfied, is gloomier than the
real facts warranted. During the Slave Era, it was hard
to get at the truth about the slaves ; and the truth about
the free black was with still more difficulty, perhaps,
arrived at. The Charlotte County slaves. Dr. Jame3
Waddell Alexander thought ''unspeakably superior to the
Northern free blacks. " *
And lastly came the slave. Theoretically, he was the
mere thrall of his master; his '*ox, his ass, his anything,"
to use the words of Petruchio, with no legal right except
that of not being deprived of his life by his master by
downright murder. But, apart from his liability to sale
and lasting separation from all his family connections and
local ties, which was the capital reproach of slavery, his
lot in Southside Virginia was by no means a very harsh
one. On this point, nothing can be more valuable than
the testimony of Dr. James Waddell Alexander, who came
to Charlotte County with all the prepossessions of a
Northern man against slavery, and resided there for
several years in the very closest association with both
whites and blacks, and was subsequently in the habit of
returning on visits to the locality in which he had resided.
' Oct. 19, 1838, 40 Yrs.' Familiar Letters, by Dr. Alexander, v. i, 270.
* 40 Yrs,* Familiar Letters, by Dr. Alexander, v. i, 353.
VOL. n— 9
130 John Randolph of Roanoke
Shortly after reaching Virginia, in a letter to Dr. Hall
from Petersburg, he indulged in these interesting reflec-
tions:
"The number of blacks which I met in the streets at first
struck me with surprise; but now everything has become
familiar. When I consider how much of the comfort, luxury
and style of Southern gentlemen would be retrenched by the
removal of the slave population, I can no longer wonder at the
tenacity with which they adhere to their pretended rights.
The servants, who wait upon genteel families, in consequence of
having been bred among refined people all their lives, have
often as great an air of gentility as their masters. The comfort
of slaves in this country is greater, I am persuaded, than that
of the free blacks as a body in any part of the United States.
They are no doubt maltreated in many in?stances; so are
children; but in general, they are well clad, well fed, and kindly
treated. Ignorance is their greatest curse, and this must ever
follow in the train of slavery. The bad policy and destructive
tendency of the system is increasingly felt; you hear daily
complaints on the subject from those who have most servants.
But what can they do? Slavery was not their choice. They
cannot and ought not to turn them loose. They cannot afford
to transport them; and generally the negroes would not con-
sent to it. The probable result of this state of things is one
which philanthropists scarcely dare contemplate.**'
When Dr. Alexander next passed through Petersburg,
on his way to Charlotte County, after a vacation at the
North for the recovery of his health which had been
seriously impaired by '*a bilious fever, " he was not quite
in the state of body or mind to see things exactly as he had
done on his first arrival in Virginia.
"The dirty, gloomy, ugly town of Petersburg," he says,
"presents the same appearance as it did three years ago, when
I entered it for the first time. I now perceived that I was
in Virginia by the gangs of negroes, some with burdens on
* Jan. 27, 1826, 40 Yrs,* Familiar Letters^ Dr. Alexander, v. i, 93.
Randolph's District 131
their heads, others driving wagons of cotton and tobacco,
women arrayed in men's hats, and children with scarcely any
raiment at all.*"
But, when he got back to Charlotte County, and to
what he called **the forests, the streams,
'The mossed oaks.
Which have outlived the eagle,'
of Virginia"^; he was soon the captive of the hamadryad
again, and again seeing things in his usual way, that is,
perhaps, just a little couleur de rose. Even on the abolition
question there then prevailed, he thought, a moderation
much in advance of the temper that he had witnessed less
than three years before.^ This opinion was expressed
five years after the death of John Randolph. Some four
years later, he reached the interesting conclusion that a
gradual emancipation was that to which the interior
economy of the North-Southern States was tending, and
that which it would reach ; that it was inevitable, and that
it was craved by thousands of the whites in Southside
Virginia. '* Nor apparently did anything ever happen to
make him change his mind on this subject. Two years
afterwards, he communicated to Dr. Hall the statement of
some Virginian that the opinion was openly expressed
every day more and more in his part of Virginia that
slavery was a curse economically s; and, upwards of ten
years later, and only six years before the beginning of the
Civil War, he penned these remarkable words:
**I am deeply convinced that a majority of the South will
one day come to the point of mitigating slavery, so far as to
make it a sort of feudal apprenticeship; and that it will be
abolished. Every year — even in the face of Northern rebuke
» Nov. 16, 1828, /{/., V. I, 114. »May ii, 1829, /d., v. i, 128.
3 Oct. 13, 1838, Id., V. I, 269. 4 Mar. 25, 1842, /d., v. i, 354.
5 Aug. 21, 1844, /{/., V. 1, 400.
132 John Randolph of Roanoke
— hundreds of new voices are raised in behalf of marriage,
integrity of families and license to read. To a practical mind
it is striking that abolitionism has abolished no slavery."'
Notwithstanding his sympathy with the trend of Vir-
ginian sentiment in favor of emancipation, Dr. Alexander
did not favor immediate emancipation. In 1848, he wrote
to Dr. Hall:
"That the most miserable portion, physically and morally,
of the black race, in the United States, is the portion which
is free, I am as well assured as I can be of any similar propo-
sition. That immediate emancipation would be a crime
I have no doubt.***
The abolition agitation, it is also interesting to note,
Dr. Alexander held responsible for a most important
change in the legislation of Virginia in regard to the slave,
which was enacted after he had returned to the North.
Writing when on a visit to Charlotte County, he said:
** The law (thanks to the meddling of anti-slavery societies)
forbids schools and public teaching to read ; it was not so
when I lived here. " ^ These views, as is well known, were
also those of the Rev. Dr. Nehemiah Adams, of Boston,
who spent three months, during the decade before the Civil
War, in the study of slavery in Georgia, South Carolina,
and Virginia; and, despite his original prepossessions
against it, on his return to Boston, gave this advice to the
North: ''Hands off! the question is a domestic one best
settled by the South, and only delayed and hampered by
interference from without." The idea that the post-
revolutionary sentiment in Virginia, in favor of the aboli-
tion of slavery, which was so earnestly shared by Wash-
ington, Jefferson, Henry and Edmund Randolph, was a
mere spasm of eleutheria, is not maintainable. Never in
an abolition convention was the institution of slavery
'Jan. 14, 1856, Id., V. 2, 218. 'May 28, 1846, Id., v. 2, 52.
« Charlotte C. H., Oct. 19, 1838, Id., v. 2, 272.
Randolph's District i33
more unsparingly denounced than it was in the Virginia
Legislature of 1831-32 by some of the most distinguished
Virginians of that time; and never was the sense of its
dangers, its evils, and its injustice so keen in Virginia as
it was when that Legislature all but succeeded in making
the proper provision for its gradual termination. Among
its opponents in Southside Virginia, were two of the ablest
Presidents that Hampden-Sidney College has ever had —
William Maxwell and John Holt Rice. Speaking of Max-
well in 1827, Dr. James Waddell Alexander said:
"He is, in my judgment, the very best orator I know any-
where. I have never heard Tazewell, with whom he maintains
a successful competition at the bar. Mr. Maxwell is a man of
wealth and influence, and he casts both, with great effect, into
the scale of Christianity. He is, though a native Virginian,
the faithful and fearless champion of the oppressed Africans.
For a publication of his on this subject the Norfolk people
menaced him with an application of tar and feathers. When
he avowed himself the author of the paper, which was pub-
lished anonymously, his opposers shrunk away before a
character so imiversally revered. He is a bachelor, lives in
good style, has an elegant library, is a most agreeable com-
panion and a finished scholar.*'^
On April 14, 1827, the Rev. Dr. John Holt Rice wrote to
the Rev. Dr. Archibald Alexander: **I have long had it
as an object, dearest to my heart, to get Virginia free from
Slavery" '; and, in the same letter, reading the signs which
Dr. James Waddell Alexander was reading too, he said:
"There is a march of opinion on the subject which would,
if uninterrupted, at no distant date, annihilate this evil
[slavery] in Virginia. I have no doubt of it. " ^ Still other
instructive and agreeable observations on the slave in
Charlotte County appear in Dr. James Waddell Alexan-
» May 13, 1827, 40 F>5.' Familiar Letter s^ by Dr, Alexander, v. i, 104.
* Memoir of the Rev, John H. Rice, by Wm. Maxwell, 313.
J Id,, 312.
134 John Randolph of Roanoke
der's Familiar Letters. "In all this country," he wrote
from Ingleside in that county, "there is no sign or sus-
picion of any suffering. I have renewed my acquaintance
with a large number of the old blacks, and have been
struck with the ease of their life."' These words were
written in 1855; but slavery in Charlotte Coimty in that
year was not materially different from what it was 25 or
30 years before. If there was any cruelty practiced upon
the slave in that county, or if the slaves there harbored
any animosity towards their masters, the fact was not
brought to the attention of Dr. James Waddell Alexander:
** I do believe,'* he wrote to Dr. Hall, ** that there are a dozen
on this estate who would risk their lives in an instant for my
wife. They are under ordinary masters a happy people. . . .
Several wait on my wife who are as well bred and (in heart)
refined as ladies.***
In another letter, he declared :
"I am more and more convinced of the injustice we do
slaveholders. Of their feelings towards their negroes I can
form a better notion than formerly by examining my own
towards the slaves who wait on my wife and mind my children.
It is a feeling most like that we have to near relations. Nan-
ette is a mild but active brown woman with whom I would
trust any interest we have. She is an invalid, however, and
in the North, would long since have died in an almshouse.
As it is, she will be well housed, well fed, protected and happy
if she lives to be 100. There are two blind women, 80-90,
on this estate who have done nothing for years. **^ Dr. Alex-
ander also had this to tell Dr. Hall :
*'Mrs. 's cook (emerita), Patty, she says, *is as
pious a woman, and a lady of as delicate sensibilities as I
ever saw ; she is one of the very best friends I have in the
' Apr. 20, 1855, V. 2, 208.
»Mar. 21, 1842, 40 Yrs,* Familiar Letters, v. i, 353.
» Mar. 10, 1842, W., V. I, 351.
Randolph's District i35
world.' "' Such a declaration brings home to us very
pointedly the affectionate intimacy which often existed
between the mistress and her servant under the patriar-
chal slave conditions of Southside Virginia. The care-
less levity with which servitude was accepted by the
younger blacks, at any rate, is amusingly brought out
by Dr. Alexander: "One of Mrs. LeGrand's black girls,
aet. 14, said more than once to my wife, with a face of
great importunity, *Miss Betsy do pray ax Missum to gi'
me to ye' ."' In nothing was Dr. James Waddell Alex-
ander so much interested as in the religious* improvement
of the blacks ; and both in his Life of his father, the Rev.
Dr. Archibald Alexander, and in his Familiar Letters^ he
imparts much valuable information on that point. The
names of black communicants at Cub Creek Church in
Charlotte County, he assures us in his Life of his father,
exceeded those of the whites, and were probably more
than 100^; Dr. James Waddell Alexander also speaks of
a preacher named Skidmore, himself a slaveholder, who
had some thirty plantations under his charge, at one of
which he preached every evening to the blacks. His sys-
tem was to enroll the names of his hearers and to conduct
the meeting on the plan of a class meeting. ^ '* I am much
affected by the negro singing,*' Dr. Alexander adds.
''There is a softness in their voices which penetrates me,
and in these meetings they all sing down to the infants. "^
In another place, he speaks of the negro-singing at a
meeting as being true enough in tone to have satisfied
Haydn. ^ These remarks remind us of the profound
truth that Randolph uttered when he said that the negro
is musical but not poetical. ^
Dr. James Waddell Alexander energetically strove both
» Id., V. I, 351. 'Oct. 19, 1838, Id., V. I, 271. 3 p. 157.
*40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, by Dr. Alexander, v. i, 351.
sMar. 10, 1842, Id., v. i, 351.
« Mar. 25, 1842, Id., v. i , 355. » Nathan Loughborough MSS.
136 John Randolph pf Roanoke
by preaching and conversational exhortation to inspire
the slaves about him with a proper sense of religioiis
responsibiKty ; and he appears to have taken a very favor-
able view of their capacity for religious instruction. Some
of the negroes about Ingleside seemed to him to be as good
and experienced Christians as any white people of the
laboring class. * He even tells us that many of the negroes
around Charlotte Court House seemed to him to be genu-
ine saints. ^ That they were, however, we must say frank-
ly, we do not believe; if for no other reason because we
have never met with any white persons of that description.
Dr. James Waddell Alexander undoubtedly saw slavery
at its best in the refined and Christian community with
which he was connected, first, as a pastor, and then as a
visitor; and his Northern prejudices against it were
doubtless to some degree qualified by his Virginian descent
and Virginian wife, though he was but a mere child when
his father left Virginia, and he did not marry Elizabeth
C. Cabell, the daughter of Dr. Geo. Cabell, until he had
expressed the same ideas about the Virginia slave that he
expressed after marriage; but that the testimony of so
able and upright a man in regard to the real conditions of
the ante-bellum negro in Southside Virginia is entitled to
an uncommon degree of respect is too manifest to require
emphasis.
But it would be grave error to imagine that the whites
in Randolph's District did not differ materially from the
whites in Tidewater Virginia. What has been loosely
called the cavalier element in Virginia was well represented
in such families as the Randolphs, the Pages, and the
Harrisons, of Cumberland County, and the Carringtons,
of Cumberland and Charlotte Counties ; but, in Cumber-
land County, which included, until 1761, the territory,
now known as Buckingham County, and in Prince Ed-
' Apr. 20, 1855, 40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, v. 2, 208.
*Oct. 19, 1838, Id., V. I, 271.
Randolph's District i37
ward and Charlotte Counties there was, after the middle
of the 1 8th century, a large Presbyterian element which
gave a character of its own to the population of those
counties. Many years before the Revolution, they were
frequently visited by the great Presbyterian missionary
and preacher, Samuel Davies, of Delaware, who became
generally known as the Apostle of Virginia; and, about
I735> under the leadership of John Caldwell, the grand-
father of John C. Calhoun, Presbyterian settlements were
effected on Cub Creek, in Charlotte County, on Buffaloe
Creek, in Prince Edward County, and at Hat Creek and
Concord, in Campbell County. Later, the Cub Creek
Church, another Presbyterian Church, at Briery, in Prince
Edward County, and Hampden-Sidney Academy, after-
wards Hampden-Sidney College, established in Prince
Edward Coimty in 1775 by the Presbytery of Hanover,
became leading centers of Presbyterian influence in the
United States. Among the remarkable men, who were
at one time or other Presidents of Hampden-Sidney, in its
early history, were Samuel Stanhope Smith, its first
president, a graduate of Princeton, who afterwards be-
came President of that institution; John Blair Smith, the
brother of Samuel Stanhope Smith and likewise a graduate
of Princeton, who afterwards became President of Union
College, New York ; Dr. Archibald Alexander, who after-
wards became the first professor of Theology in the
Princeton Theological Seminary, and Dr. Moses Hoge,
whose eloquence was greatly admired by John Randolph,
(a) Among its professors, when Dr. Archibald Alexander
was its President, was Dr. John Holt Rice, a **tiuly great
and extraordinary man*' in the opinion of Dr. Archibald
Alexander,' who was later offered the Presidency of
Princeton but declined it, and Dr. Conrad Speece, who
had " a great mind, '* in the opinion of Wm. Wirt. ' Dur-
« Memoir ff Rev, John Holt Rice, by Maxwell, 399.
• Id., 202.
138 John Randolph of Roanoke
ing the Presidency of Dr. Hoge, were laid the foundations
of the Union Theological Seminary, which, until its
removal, a few years ago, from Prince Edward County to
Richmond, was associated for so many years in the public
mind with Hampden-Sidney College. Under the headship
of Dr. Rice, this institution acquired as high a reputation
in the South as the Theological Seminary of Princeton
enjoyed in the North, and it would be difficult to exagger-
ate the extent to which the able and devoted men, who
have been connected with it and Hampden-Sidney Col-
lege have moulded the minds and characters of the
people of Southside Virginia. The effect of the Cal-
vinistic ministers, who taught at the two institutions,
and of the different ministers, who filled the Presby-
terian pulpits of Cumberland, Prince Edward, and
Charlotte Counties after 1735, was to give to life in
those counties a soberer and more earnest aspect than
life usually wore among the more social and pleasure-
loving inhabitants of Tidewater Virginia. Every few
miles, along the woodland roads in Randolph's District,
stood some large, bare, quadrangular frame structure,
with no more pretensions to architectural beauty or grace
than a drygoods box, where Sunday after Sunday some
dutiful Presbyterian divine expounded the stem dogmas
of his creed, inculcated the purest and soundest principles
of morality, confirmed the faith of the careless and waver-
ing, and held up to the eyes of the penitent sinner the
atoning blood of Christ Jesus. All of these faithful men
were not Archibald Alexanders, or John Holt Rices, or
Moses Hoges ; certainly not such a sublime melting orator
as the blind Presbyterian preacher, James Waddell, the
father-in-law of Dr. Archibald Alexander, whose eloquence
William Wirt has sketched in The British Spy with such
a telling pencil. Men like these are rare at any time and
anywhere ; but far the greater portion of them were worthy
of the Scotch Calvinism which, in the person of its minister,
Randolph's District i39
experienced no difficulty in reconciling the narrowest
income, the barest surroundings, and the plainest fare with
dignity of character and bearing, a lofty standard of morals
and deportment, profound learning, and the persuasive
accents which captivate unwilling hearts. If the author
were to take his reader to the humble edifice on Cub
Creek, where the crook of John Caldwell brought together
one of the first Presbyterian flocks in Southside Virginia,
he could scarcely believe that, in such a building, in such
a half-subdued wilderness, could such famous men as Dr.
Archibald Alexander and Dr. John Holt Rice have ever
ptirsued their sacred calling, and the incredulity of the
reader would be hardly less outspoken were the author to
take him a few miles west of Cub Creek Church to Roa-
noke Church, another great four-square bam of later date
and tell him that here at times in his boyhood, when the
Roanoke Presbytery was holding its sessions, and every
hospitable home in the vicinity was honored by having
some clergyman billeted upon it, would be seen more than
one debater or orator such as Robert L. Dabney, or
Clement C. Vaughn, qualified to arrest and fix the atten-
tion of any assemblage, however critical.
Almost from the beginning of its existence as a civilized
community, therefore, Randolph's District was Presby-
terian territory, and, under the influence, modified by
slavery, of course, as everything else within its limits was,'
of the peculiar tenets and temperament of Presbyterian-
ism. In Randolph's time, there was no Episcopal rector
in Charlotte County, ^ and there was no Methodist Church
there until 1842'; and, as there were no, or practically,
no Catholics, the only sects, except the Methodists, who
had some little strength here and there, to whom the
spiritual welfare of the people in Randolph's District was
« Bouldin, 38.
» Feb. 23, 1842, 40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, by Dr. Archibald Alexander, v.
1,349.
140 John Randolph of Roanoke
cx)mmitted, were the Presbyterians and the Baptists ; and
the influence of the latter, though considerable, was not
determining. On the whole, the churches of these sects
discharged their trusts with fidelity and efficiency, and
were not only religious agencies but points about which
no small part of the social life of their members circled.
Indeed, Charles Bruce, the Charlotte County planter, to
whom we have several times referred, bearing in mind the
market reports and countryside gossip, of which they
were no mean centers of propagation, was once heard to
say that their communicants deserved no credit for
attending their services with such ptmctilious regularity
because they supplied these communicants with almost
their only sources of social recreation and business intelli-
gence. Be this as it may, the types of character, devel-
oped by them, were often very different from those de-
veloped by the Established Church, or even the Episcopal
Church, as afterwards more or less evangelized. At
times, great waves of religious enthusiasm, known as
revivals, would sweep over them, blowing up the dying
embers and bleaching ashes of sinking religious faith into
quickened life, rekindling the love and fear, to which
religion beyond any other htunan agency holds the keys,
and filling the breasts of the indifferent, the selfish, and the
depraved with tumultous feelings of mingled self-reproach
and hope which sometimes found expression even in
hysteria. And, at one time, there was an intestine con-
troversy between the Old School and New School Pres-
byterians in Southside Virginia sufficiently bitter to cause
Dr. James Waddell Alexander to speak of it as "The Holy
War." In fact, he even said that it was ''beUum plus-
quam civile, " and divided house against house and mother
against daughter. ^
To realize how unlike, in some respects, the tone of
society in Southside Virginia in Randolph's day was from
«Oct. 13, 1838, 40 Yrs' Familiar Letters^ v. i, 269.
Randolph's District 141
that of the state of society, of which the Established
Episcopal Church in Tidewater Virginia was one of the
principal features, we need only turn to some of the par-
ticularly conspicuous individuals, men and women, who
were the fruits of Presbyterianism in the former region.
One of the most conspicuous, Little Joe Morton, became
an inhabitant of Charlotte County, then a part of Lunen-
burg County, so early that when he built his log cabin
near Little Roanoke Bridge, he did not have a neighbor
nearer than 30 miles to protect his wife and children, when
he was called away from home by his business as a sur-
veyor. It was he who was employed at times by the
Randolphs and others to look up lands in the country
about his rude abode for which it might be desirable for
them to secure patents. He is said to have been a bold
pioneer, a staunch hunter, and a skilful tracker and
rounder-up of wild horses, like those which gave Horse
Pen Creek in Charlotte County its name. ' The manner,
in which this man became enlisted in the service of God,
is thus narrated in a brief memoir of him which appeared
in the Watchman and Observer for Feb. 18, 1847.
"When Mr. Davies took long tours of preaching, which he
usually did in the course of the year, he was commonly ac-
companied by a pious young man not merely as a companion
but as a pioneer, to ride on before and find a place of lodging;
for many people were unwilling to receive a *New Light'
preacher into their houses in those days. In this service,
yotmg John Morton (father of Major Morton) was sometimes
employed, for, having been converted under Mr. Davies'
ministry, he was delighted to have the opportunity of enjoying
his company and pious conversation. The writer has often
heard old Mrs. Morton, of Little Roanoke Bridge, called
*the Mother in Israel,' relate the circumstance of Mr. Davies'
first visit to that place. Young John Morton, who was a
relative, came one day to know whether Mr. Davies, the *New
Light' preacher, could be lodged there that night. Her hus-
« Life of Dr, Archibald Alexander, by Dr. James Waddell Alexander, 180.
H2 John Randolph of Roanoke
band, called by way of distinction Little Joe Morton, not being
at the house, she cotild not answer. But when he was sent
for from the field, and the question was proposed to him, after
a few moments' consideration, he answered in the affirmative;
and Mr. Morton went back to the inn and brought Mr. Davies
to the house; and with him Christ and salvation came to that
•
house. Both of the heads of the family, under the influence
of the gospel, as heard from Mr. Davies, became truly and
eminently pious; and their conversion was the foundation of
the Briery Congregation, of which Little Joe Morton was the
first elder, and, before they had a regular minister, was more
like a pastor than a ruling elder; for every Sabbath he would
convene the people and read to them an evangelical sermon,
and regularly catechise the children out of the shorter catechism.
The writer never saw this excellent man, but he can truly say
he never knew any layman to leave behind him a sweeter savor
of piety. None was ever heard to speak of him, after his
decease, otherwise than with respect, bordering on veneration;
and all the children of this pious pair became members of the
Presbyterian Church; and, if all their children and grand-
children were collected together, who are members of the
church, they would form a large congregation; and, among
them, would be foimd several preachers of the Gospel."^
Another prominent figure, in the early history of South-
side Virginia Presbyterianism, was Col. Samuel Venable,
who was a graduate of Princeton, as were his three
brothers, Abraham, Richard, and Nathaniel, and many
another braw young Southside Virginian. Dr. Arcihbald
Alexander became acquainted with him in 1789, or 9
years after he had graduated at Princeton, and, during the
whole of his own life, was accustomed to speak of him as
the most remarkable instance of wisdom, matured by
experience and observation, that he had ever known;
indeed, in this respect, he is said to have been fond of
comparing him with Franklin.* He resided in Prince
« Sketches of Va., by Foote, 215.
' Life of Dr. Archibald Alexander, by Alexander, 128-130.
Randolph's District i43
Edward County, and was successful enough as a merchant,
to accumulate a large estate for his time. His wife was
the daughter of the elder Judge Paul Canington, and is
said to have been a woman of uncommon vivacity, wit,
and power of sarcasm; and they had twelve children, all
of whom she lived to see married and converted.* In
1842, no less than 142 descendants of this pair were living. '
Not unlike one of those devout women, who ministered
to the comfort of the Apostles, was another individual
who has been portrayed for us with sharp distinctness by
her grateful contemporaries; that is Paulina Read, first
the wife of Edmund Read, and afterwards of the Rev.
Nash LeGrand, a Presbyterian minister. It was at her
home, "Retirement," about two miles from Charlotte
Court House, that Dr. Archibald Alexander resided for
three or four years, during his pastorate in Charlotte
County ; and, thirty years afterwards, the same hospitable
and Christian roof sheltered Dr. James Waddell Alexan-
der, during his pastorate in the same county. Her plan-
tation was contiguous with Ingleside, the plantation of
Henry Canington, which Dr. James Waddell Alexander
occasionally visited after his pastorate in Charlotte
County had ceased, and the two together contained about
6,000 acres of land, which seem to have been kept in a
well -tilled and highly productive condition. ^ In his Life
of Dr. Archibald Alexander ^ Dr. James Waddell Alexander
tells us that Mrs. LeGrand was widely known among
Christians of every name in Virginia, and that probably
no house in the land ever opened its doors to more minis-
ters of the Gospel; that, indeed, a whole Presbytery was
sometimes sheltered under her roof; and that her wealth
was largely dispensed in acts of charity. He further tells
us that though of a despondent turn as to her own spiritual
» Life of Dr, Archibald Alexander ^ by Alexander, 129; and Forty Years*
Familiar Letters, by Alexander, v. i, 352.
* Ibid. ^ 40 Yrs.' Familiar Letters , by Alexander, v. i, 269.
144 John Randolph of Roanoke
state, she was perpetually occupied with religious thoughts
and employment, and was a devoted hearer of the Word;
and that, when Dr. Archibald Alexander first came to
Charlotte County, having been recently brought to the
knowledge of the evangelical truth, she was full of zeal,
and unwearied in her endeavors to second all Gospel
labors. ' And how constant were the principles by which
her conduct was governed may be inferred from what Dr.
James Waddell Alexander had to say of her long after-
wards in his Forty Years' Familiar Letters^ when he was on
a visit to Charlotte County, after his return to Princeton:
** Mrs. LeGrand's house is still full from day to day. There
is not a small mechanic or laboring family in all the village, or
vicinage, who does not freely come to her for aid, or as freely
enter her doors. I sincerely think I have never seen a human
being who lived so much for others. Mere sacrifice of money
is little: in her case it is sacrifice of health, time, privacy,
convenience, ease, and (virtually) of life. She is about 78,
and is ill enough any day to keep her bed, which she never kept
except when in severe pain or extreme languor. Her cough is
deadly and her extenuation extreme."*
Later, when the news of Mrs. LeGrand's death reached
him. Dr. James Waddell Alexander used these tender
words about her ; not so tender, however, as to lose sight
of the tenebrous shadows in which their object had worked
out her salvation under the stem creed of Calvin :
*' I suppose I had no better friend on earth. Mrs. LeGrand
has been an extraordinary woman. Her views of her own
religious state were always dark. On every other point, no
one could be less morbid or more clear of sight. Her con-
science and intrepidity exceeded all I ever read in books.
I do not believe the human being lived to whom she
durst not speak her mind. Her beneficence for 60 years has
» 40 Yrs,* Familiar Letters ^ by Dr. Alexander, v. 2, 19-21.
«irf.,v. 1,349.
Randolph's District i45
been, so far as I know, unexampled. Like most planters, she
had little ready money; but she has been a perennial fountain
of good works. She has washed the saints' feet; her notions
of plainness were extreme; her personal attire was little above
that of her servants in expense; she loved all of every sect who
loved religion; and such as did not she exhorted and warned
in a way which shames me when I write. She was distressingly
exercised about slavery, but what could she do? She often
asked me, but I was dumb. She had as many as possible
taught to read and this up to the present time (1845). A large
number of her slaves are real Christians; not to speak of per-
haps a hundred who have gone to Heaven. I fully believe
that more of them have secured eternal life than would have
been the case in any freedom conceivable."'
Seven days later, in another letter to Dr. Hall, Dr.
James Waddell Alexander said :
"My father lived under her roof several years; so did I
30 years after. My first interview with my wife was there.
There also was my first ministry. A longer course of good
doing (euxotta, Heb. xiii), I never knew. The executive
part of Christianity seemed almost perfect in her.***
In an earlier letter, Dr. James Waddell Alexander tells
us that Mrs. LeGrand lodged and boarded **a good Epis-
copalian (a Connecticut man but 20 years in Virginia)
awaiting orders for his business among her slaves. " " He
has this moment," he adds, '* returned on foot, and
through a smart rain, from the overseer's house, two miles
off, where he instructed a group of 15 last night. **^
Indeed, Southside Virginia Presbyterianism seems to
have even had its ascetic, a fact, happily, that has not
often clouded the spirit of the healthy-minded people of
that portion of Virginia. Referring in one of his letters to
Dr. Hall to a recent visit to Prince Edward County, Dr.
James Waddell Alexander says :
"Feb. 10, 1845, Id., V. 2, 19. "Feb. 17, 1845, /d.,v. 2,21.
» Oct. 19, 1838, Id.f V. I, 272.
VOL. II — 10
146 John Randolph of Roanoke
**I there saw such an instance of solitary life as I never
before witnessed. Mrs. Spencer, a woman of nearly 80 years
of age, has lived the life of a hermit for about 30 years. Her
residence is a Uttle log hut at a distance from any other habi-
tation, and she suffers no living being to remain with her
during the night, or for any long period during the day. Her
victuals are cooked about half a mile off and sent to her once
a day. She is crooked and withered; dresses always in white
linen, and in the oldest fashion. Her whole time is spent in
reading the Scriptures, singing and prayer. Visitors some-
times have to remain nearly an hour at her door before she
concludes the prayer in which she may be engaged. She is
the most unearthly being I ever beheld; her conversation is
pleasant and rational; and her religion seems to be unfeigned
and ardent."'
In his John Randolph, Henry Adams expresses the opin-
ion that one of the reasons why Randolph's constituents
were so patient with him was because "they were used to
coarseness that would have sickened a Connecticut ped-
dler."^ Just how much coarseness it takes to sicken a
Connecticut, or any other, peddler, we confess ourselves
unable to decide. Not a little, we imagine, whether
peddlers engaged in peddling wooden nutmegs or other
wares. But, if what Adams meant to say was that the
society, of which Randolph was a part, was a peculiarly
coarse one, he simply did not state a fact. Social condi-
tions in Southside Virginia, during Randolph's time, had,
of course, their shortcomings. Judged by latter day
standards, they were marked by a certain degree of raw-
ness and rustic simplicity such as one would naturally
expect in communities which had but recently been
frontier settlements and had not fully taken on the char-
acter of a complex and long-established civilization.
"I am under great uneasiness for Tudor," Randolph wrote
on one occasion to Josiah Quincy from Richmond. '* There
»Mar. 13, 1827, Id., v. i, 99. 'P. 256.
Randolph's District i47
is no field for him in his native country. Would you have him
return here, attend a court every week, ride more miles than
a post-boy, sleep two perhaps three in a bed and barely make a
support for himself and his horse? Such is the Ufe of our
coimtry lawyers who eke out their scanty gains by some paltry
speculation at the Sheriff's sales.** ^ (a)
The gentry class had the defects of the virtues, as well
as the virtues, which inhere in an aristocratic, or quasi-
aristocratic, society. The pride of this class was too quick
to take alarm at supposed insult or indignity, and mani-
fested itself at times, even when there was no such fancied
provocative, in a too imperious and overbearing spirit.
JeflFerson was right when he said that the effect of slavery
was to foster a despotic spirit in the breast of the whites,
though the coloring that he gave to his statement was
perhaps too vivid. The courtesy of this class was some-
times a little Grandisonian, and its courage ran out too
quickly into temerity. Its deference for women occasion-
ally made it difficult for a man to obtain justice where a
woman was his accuser. In many economic respects, too,
the ignorance and inefficiency of the slave, and, above all,
the extent to which his numbers and servility relieved the
members of this class of the necessity of doing many
things for themselves that it is well for every hiunan being
to be under the necessity of doing for himself, reacted
unfavorably, to some extent, upon their morale; though
there was never a better school than the Southern planta-
tion for the development of leadership and the executive
faculty. The thriftless, shiftless mass of himian beings,
with whom they had to deal, apart from its direct influence
over them in one way or another, could not but finally
make them more or less indifferent to proper industrial
standards of every kind.
Nor should any false sense of delicacy deter us from
admitting that the purity of conduct which was so con-
* Life of Quincy, 351.
148 John Randolph of Roanoke
spicuous among women of the gentry class, and, through
force of example, of the lower classes of whites as well,
in Southside Virginia, under the Slave R6gime, was due
in some measure to the abundant opportunity that the
women of a servile and degraded race afforded the white
race for licentious intercourse. In the matter of sexual
purity, the white women of the South, under the Slave
Regime, unmarried and married, reached perhaps as high
a level of attainment as can ever be expected under any
social conditions, and, because of the influence naturally
exerted by the character of such women over their hus-
bands, as well as other conspiring influences, it is surpris-
ing how rarely it was, though illustrations to the contrary
might be readily cited, that the IshmaeKtish Hagar came
between Sarah and her lord, (a) But, in the opinion of
the author, it caimot be truthfully declared that any
higher standard of sexual morality prevailed among young
unmarried white men under the Slave R6gime in South-
side Virginia than among young unmarried men in other
portions of the United States ; though he is yet to have any
convincing evidence brought to his attention showing that
the standard which prevailed among them was lower.
The manners of the less fortunate whites were in some
respects, of course, rude. In his John Randolph, Henry
Adams speaks of gouging as if it prevailed in Randolph's
youth in every country neighborhood in Virginia, whether
in the backwoods or otherwise. To begin with, the extent
of this frontier practice is grossly exaggerated by him.
But it was not until he published his history of the United
States that he brought out the fact, which he might have
been just and candid enough to have brought out in his
John Randolph, that, during the time that the practice
of gouging prevailed in Virginia, it also prevailed in
England.' Even Anburey, who formed an unfavorable
opinion in some regards of the lower orders of the white
» V. 1, 5a.
Randolph's District i49
population of Virginia, in 1789, states that the better class
of the two classes into which he divides them were hospi-
table, generous, and friendly. In the judgment of the
author, no people with the same limited opportunities
were ever more liberally endowed with the rudimentary
virtues of true manhood than both classes. The Civil
War, if nothing else, demonstrated that. Backward in
many respects as they were, the humblest of them had a
nattu^al dignity and independence of character, and a
fund of innate sympathy and good feeling, which, if they
did not distinguish him from the whites of the same stock
and class in other portions of the United States, distin-
guished him very sharply indeed from individuals of the
same class in many foreign lands.
Fortimately for Southside Virginia Dr. James Waddell
Alexander and Dr. Archibald Alexander have both borne
testimony to what the people of Randolph's District were
under social conditions which placed within the reach of a
small pecuniary income a measure of material abundance
and comfort that even a considerable fortune now often
fails to secure, made good manners, moral worth, and
intellectual distinction, rather than the mere acquisi-
tion of wealth, the passports to public respect and favor,
and left some time from the practical duties of life, now
too often devoted to the feverish pursuit of unwholesome
pleasures or excessive gain, for the cultivation of social
gifts, and the indulgence of the mellower and more cordial
impulses of the human heart.
The first view that the former Alexander had of South-
side Virginia was in Petersburg when he was on his way to
his new home at Charlotte Court House. After speaking
in a letter to Dr. Hall of the incessant round of social ex-
actions which he had been treading, " enlivened by the
peculiarly abundant good cheer of this bountiful land
and the copious flowing of rum toddy and the like refec-
tions," and of rides on a '* high-blooded horse," in
150 John Randolph of Roanoke
company with fellow equestrians and a carriage load
of beauty and vivacity, and of com bread and bacon,
oysters and hominy, daily dinners and unceasing conver-
sation, he uses these words :
'*As to society, I am free to declare that I have never so
enjoyed social and Christian intercourse in my life as here.
Without trying it, you can have no conception of what South-
em hospitality means. After all my preparations and previ-
ous knowledge, I find myself daily surprised with the winning
cordiality and kindness of the people; and this not merely in
expression and words. Every house seems at once a home, and
every individual devotes himself heartily, and, with manifest
satisfaction, to your service. If you look for splendor, you
would be disappointed, except in the particulars of servants'
attendance and diet. The tables of the Seaboard Virginians
are worthy of their fame. I am sometimes almost discon-
certed with the multitude of servants waiting at table."'
And then, as now, the Virginian had his way of harmo-
nizing his social recreations with his religious duties.
'* There are in my uncle's [Dr. Benjamin H. Rice] congre-
gation about 25 young men who profess religion, and are
more active in the cause than many ministers, ** Dr. Alex-
ander says in the same letter. '* From this you may judge
what the people in general are. " In the same letter, the
writer also says that '*the nimiber of agreeable and pious
ladies is remarkable, *' and the easy access to everybody's
house and heart more free than he had ever expected in
his fondest hopes. **A man who comes here," he adds
just a little reflectively, '*must come with some equestrian
skill or expect to get his neck broken. " *
On his return to * 'Retirement" after a considerable
sojourn at the North, for his health, and when he had re-
solved to give up his charge in Charlotte County, Dr. Alex-
» Dec. 23, 1825, 40 Yrs,* Familiar Letters, by Alexander, v. i, 91.
« Id., 92.
Randolph's District 151
ander wrote to Dr. Hall: '* I expect never to see so many
persons so rejoiced to meet with me as appeared at the
little church last Sunday. It is painful, indeed, to leave
friends so cordial and sincere, but I believe I am pursuing
the path of duty."' When he settled down in Trenton,
he wrote to Dr. Hall that, under the new circiunstances,
he felt a greater stimulus to what might be called the
external or literary part of preparation than he had ever
experienced among his simpler flock in Virginia;' but, in a
later letter, he observed feelingly to the same correspon-
dent that he had once had experience with the wretched-
ness of leaving an affectionate people and that the experi-
ment was one of which he craved no repetition. ^ Some
19 months afterwards, he wrote to Dr. Hall that he should
be unwilling to exchange Trenton for any pastoral charge
that he had ever seen, excepting only Charlotte Court
House, Va., which it would be sheer madness for him to
undertake with his atrabilious temperament. ^ The gen-
eral character of the whole country, which Dr. Archibald
Alexander made the seat of his labors, when he assiuned
charge of Cub Creek and Briery Churches, is very accu-
rately stated in the biography of him written by Dr.
James Waddell Alexander :
"There is no portion of the State or country where the
bright side of the planters' life is more agreeably exhibited.
The district has always been remarkable for its adaptation
to the culture of a particular variety of tobacco which usually
commands high prices, and it has, therefore, abounded in
slaves. Although the estates are less extensive than in the
cotton districts of the remoter South, the proprietors enjoy
the comforts and luxuries of life in a high degree, and almost
every family has some man of liberal education within its
bosom. Hospitality and genial warmth may be said to be
» Nov. 16, 1828, Id., 115. » Jan. 24, 1829, Id,, v. i, 120.
i Dec. 4, 1829, Id., V. I, 138.
^Id., V. I, 172.
152 John Randolph of Roanoke
universal. Nowhere in the South has the Presbyterian
Church had greater strength among the wealthy and cultivated
classes. It was to be for a long time the theatre of Mr. Alex-
ander's labors; and throughout life he looked back on these
as halcyon days.'*'
There could be no doubt about the "hospitality and
genial warmth." On Oct. 19, 1838, writing to Dr. Hall
from Charlotte Court House, where he was paying a visit,
Dr. Alexander said :
"The manners and customs here are not the best for an
invalid. A visit of relations, some 20 in number, horses,
coaches, retinue, etc., lasts at least one day; sometimes a week.
Where one comes 1 7 miles, as did to see us, it is out of the
question to make a morning call. And, when in turn we go to
see some of our kin, the solemnities of an old time ceremonious
dinner are anything but reviving to a queasy stomach.'**
And it would be a mistake to suppose that the upper
classes in this community at any rate lacked schools; for
on Feb. 23, 1842, Dr. Alexander wrote to Dr. Hall from
Charlotte Court House : "There are five schools in this
village; among these is Michael Osborne's lately erected
girls* school which has 26 already."^ In 1836, Martin's
Gazetteer makes mention also of a female academy and two
elementary schools for boys at Marysville, the County
seat of Buckingham County ; of another elementary school
at Cartersville in Cumberland County ; of a female school
at Farmville in Prince Edward County, and of a male
academy and seminary at Prince Edward Court House in
Prince Edward County. The latter enjoyed a high repu-
tation, provided for a three-year course, had about 80
pupils, and was conducted by two principals and five
assistants. The former prepared youths for college. -•
• Life of Dr. Archibald Alexander, by Alexander, 156.
• 40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, by Alexander, v. i, 271.
• Id., 349- * PP' 135, 161, 268, 269.
Randolph's District 153
Besides the educational facilities afforded by these schools,
there were, of course, throughout Randolph's District,
those afforded by the ruder schools, known as the "Old-
field Schools. "
After preaching in 1 789 in Charlotte and Prince Edward
Counties, Dr. Archibald Alexander referred to the people
in whose midst he had been as those ** affectionate and
delightful people. " ' At times, when on one of his pastoral
roimds, the rites of hospitality would be pressed upon him
with such assiduous solicitude by his plainer parishioners
that he would find himself tied down for hoxu^ to a single
spot. Thus, on one occasion at old Mr. Redd's, on Bush
River, no heed whatever was paid to his assurance that he
did not come to dine, and everything was set in motion to
spread "an enormous dinner" before him; chickens were
chased in all directions, fires were kindled, the closets were
searched, and, in addition to the chickens, the mistress
and her maids were soon in the act of preparing a fat tur-
key for the spit. Finally, when old Mr. Redd came in, he
would not permit himself to be seen until he had shaved
his beard and put on some clean clothes. On this occasion,
Dr. Archibald Alexander found that he had wasted a whole
day in visiting one family. So for this method of pastoral
visitation he adopted that of preaching in different parts
of his clerical pale in private houses; but this, too, he
found would not do ; for so kind and hospitable were the
instincts of the householder that, with his invitation, some-
times as many as 30 persons remained after the service to
dine. "The old Virginians," Dr. Alexander comments,
*' never count the cost of dinners even when they give very
little for the support of the gospel. " ^
Such social characteristics as these may be vulnerable
from an economic point of view, and cannot be reconciled
with fastidious standards of elegance, but they certainly
* Lije oj Dr, Archibald Alexander , by Alexander, 128.
» Id., 169-171.
154 John Randolph of Roanoke
do not betoken the kind of coarseness that is likely to
sicken anybody — Connecticut peddler or otherwise —
unless it be some such person as the devitalized American
who, wearied with the '*sad satiety" of a life without
duties, and largely spent abroad in the pursuit of purely
artificial gratifications, sinks, with a withered cry, from a
jaded life into a rayless grave.
And it would be a misconception also to think of the
homes of the landed gentry in Southside Virginia in Ran-
dolph's time as wholly hard and devoid of adornment.
The furniture at Prestwould was handsome enough to
excite the admiration of Lancaster when he was making his
circuit of the old Virginia mansion-houses. ' And no little
attention seems to have been given to flowers by the
inmates of some of these homes. In one of his letters to
Dr. Hall, Dr. James Waddell Alexander speaks with enthu-
siasm of **the ten million blossomings" of '*the wide plan-
tation, " on which he then was, that were out together —
**peach, apricot, cherry , pltmi, crab and apple, " intermixed
with the lilac, the almond, the pyrus japonica, corcoras
and hyacinths. ' In another letter, he says: '* I have just
been in Mrs. LeGrand's garden; which is faeryland. There
are blooming and perfuming at this moment, and by
wholesale, yellow jasmines, double peach hyacinths,
Siberian crab, tulip, violets, pansies, jonquils, etc. "^ And
this is the description that he gives of another garden near
Prestwould :
" In Abram Venable's garden of 3 acres, I counted 66 beds
of tulips in bloom, and, in an average bed, I counted 144
tulips — 9504 actually blooming ; every shade and contour. He
is equally curious in roses. His house is in full view of Prest-
would, seat of the late Sir Peyton Skipwith, occupied by
Humberston Skipwith, the 2d son. Sir Grey lives abroad.*'^
» Historic Va. Homes and Chutches^ 445.
* Apr. 20, 1855, 40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters ^ by Alexander, v. 2, 207.
* Mar. 25, 1842. < Apr. 26, 1842, Id,, v. i, 356.
Randolph's District i55
All this after telling us that, while in Mecklenburg
County, he saw eglantine and coral honeysuckle wild and
as "plenty as blackberries," and found the air of its
swamps oppressively loaded with the fragrance of the caly-
canthus. But may not a native of Southside Virginia ask
whether the good doctor was not mistaken in supposing
that he inhaled the fragrance of the calycanthus outside
of Mrs. LeGrand's garden? Even after the Civil War, the
flower gardens at Ridgeway, the home of one of the
younger Paul Carringtons, Staunton Hill, the home of
Charles Bruce, and Windstone, the home of Edward
Winston Henry, one of the sons of Patrick Henry, all in
Charlotte County, still existed to give an idea of what the
gardens of Mrs. LeGrand and Abram Venable were.
And it was a manly race, too, with which the Alexanders
— ^father and son — came into contact!
"The boys are centaurs," Dr. James Waddell Alexander
wrote to Dr. Hall, **and I wonder daily at the coolness with
which Mrs. C, a very cautious mother, sees her son, 9 years
old, galloping like the wind through woods, and over fences
and ditches on a colt, or a mule, or anything that has legs.'*'
And a boy took so early to his gun in Southside Virginia
that it was hard for him, after he became a man, to remem-
ber how old he was when he shot his first *' partridge" on
the wing, or first joined in the hue and cry of a fox-chase.
"If you love shooting,** Dr. Alexander wrote to Dr. Hall on
another occasion from "Retirement,** *'come here and, without
going off this plantation, you may bag your four dozen quail
a day, with an occasional wild turkey; pheasants and rabbits
also abound. An acquaintance of mine has caught more than
20 foxes this winter, and is now following his hounds with
great zeal.**^
» 40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, by Dr. Alexander, v. i, 353.
= Jan. 26, 1827, Id., V. I, 96.
156 John Randolph of Roanoke
Nor can there be any doubt that law and order prevailed
to a remarkable extent in Randolph's District. In a
letter to Key from Roanoke, dated Feb. 9, 181 8, he re-
ferred to certain crimes of deep atrocity, which had been
perpetrated in the last two or three years in Charlotte
County, and adds: '*This country seems to labor under a
judgment. It has been conspicuous for the order and
morality of the inhabitants, and such is the character I
hope yet. " ' Some eight years later. Dr. John Holt Rice
spoke in a letter to the Rev. Leonard Woods of the society
in Prince Edward County as bearing normally the charac-
ter of being the most orderly of any in the country.*
About the same time, Dr. James Waddell Alexander,
writing from '* Retirement" to Dr. Hall, remarked: "It
is, moreover, (I speak of this county) a moral country; no
gambling, no dissipation or frolicking."^ Many years
after Randolph's death, the same favorable testimony
might have been borne to the moral character of the
communities which made up his District. In 1867,
in his Defence of Virginia, the Rev. Robert L. Dab-
ney, who had long resided in Prince Edward County,
stated that, in the '* orderly little county of Prince Ed-
ward," the criminal convictions of black persons had
averaged only one per year before the Civil War. ^ And
in 1907, J. Cullen Carrington, clerk of the Charlotte
County Court, could say in his Charlotte County Hand
Book of the County, with which he was so thoroughly
familiar:
"With a population of 15,355, it is no uncommon occurrence
that the county jail is without inmates; and, as an evidence
of their thrift [the thrift of the Charlotte County people],
the report of the Superintendent of the County Poor House
» Garland, v. 2, 96.
• Aug. 12, 1826, Memoir of Dr. John Holt Rw, by Maxwell, 299.
* 40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, v. i, 95:
4 P. 92 (note).
Randolph's District i57
for year ending July i, 1906, showed there was an average of
only II inmates."'
If anything, now that the prohibition of intoxicating
liquors has been so overwhelmingly approved by the
people of Virginia, first, as a measure of State, and then
of National, policy, order and morality are more strongly
entrenched in the counties of Randolph's District than
they were even in his day.
Nowhere in the United States will there be found a
people freer from vice and dissipation, with a profounder
religious faith, or with a richer endowment of those
simple, manly, native virtues and kindly, cordial, social
impulses, which gave to the old Virginian society its
highest worth. It is not in the social or moral character
of the people of Randolph's District, either in his time or
ours, that any true reproach to them is to be found, but
only in the economic sequels of past conditions which still
exercise, to a considerable extent, a depressing effect upon
their energy and enterprise. The real criticism to which
that District is subject is not that it should not have
been better than it was in his time, but that it should not
be better in many respects today than it was then. '* The
most painful thing in visiting this old slave-holding
country," wrote Dr. James Waddell Alexander to Dr.
Hall in 1840, **is to see, after 15 years' acquaintance, none
of those municipal and domestic improvements which,
strike one in the North. "^ With our Northern brothers
stiU setting the example that they did when these words
were written, and with the rise of great industrial com-
munities south of Virginia, and the marked material
progress, which has been made in recent years by some
portions of Virginia, there is good reason to hope that the
counties, which were formerly in Randolph's District, may,
in a few more years of desquamation, exhibit some of the
"municipal and domestic improvements," the lack of
« p. 25. ' Oct. 27, 1840, 40 Yrs/ Familiar Letters, v. i, 313.
158 John Randolph of Roanoke
which Dr. Alexander deplored, and yet not be despoiled
of what remains of the characteristics of which he was such
an intelligent observer and such a loving interpreter.
With a few exceptions, all the people in Randolph's
District were engaged in tobacco planting, or in callings
directly or indirectly ancillary to it. There were four or
five lawyers grouped about each of its four county seats,
who led the kind of life that Randolph was so loth that
Tudor should lead. Here and there, was a doctor who
usually united the character of a physician with that of a
tobacco planter ; and his life on the professional side was
not only a long struggle with disease but also with bad
roads and the caprices of a climate which Dr. James
Waddell Alexander found one summer ''tropical-canicu-
lar,"* and which, while usually blander in mid- winter
than more Northern climates, yet had its share too of ice,
sleet, and snow, (a) A Southside Virginia doctor, of the
best standing, has been revived for us in a feeling way by
Dr. George W. Bagby in his reminiscences of Dr. James
Dillon, of Prince Edward County. ' At every village and
along the country roads, were to be seen the simple dwel-
lings of Presbyterian and Baptist ministers, who were gen-
erally men of pious, worthy lives, and held in the highest
esteem, and often in the deepest affection, by their parish-
ioners; and, in portions of Randolph's District, there
were a few Methodist Ministers also. Not many, we
imagine ; for it is said that when Randolph was asked to
allow the use of his name as a part of the proposed name
of Randolph-Macon College, and was told that the object
of the college was the education of young Methodists, he
replied in his sarcastic way, ** Yes, you can use my name;
for, when educated, they will cease to be Methodists"^
'July 3, 1827, 40 Yts.* Familiar Letters, v. i, 107.
« Miscellaneous Writirtgs ofDr, George W, Bagby, v. i, 262.
» Letter from H. P. Hutcheson, of Mecklenbui^g Co., Va., to the author,
Mar. 19, 1919.
Randolph's District i59
— SL fling which has but little point in our day when
the Methodist Church abounds in learned men, who,
aside from their general professional usefulness, do
more, perhaps, than the clergymen of any other denomi-
nation to promote all those moral reforms which are
closely associated with political progress.
There were no towns in Randolph's District; unless
Farmville, in Prince Edward County, which was not
incorporated until 1832, and in 1836 contained only 800
inhabitants, could be called such. ' Even in regard to it,
Isaac Carrington, a local wag, is said to have declared,
upon visiting it not long after Randolph's death, that he
had seen a good deal of the farm but very little of the
viUe. The only other collections of htunan beings de-
serving of mention were : Maysville, or Buckingham Court
House, in Buckingham Coimty, with a population of 300
people ; Diuguidsville, in the same county, with a popula-
tion of 132 people; New Canton, in the same county, with
a population of 50 people; Stonewall MlQs, in the same
county, with a population of 20 people; Cartersville, in
Cumberland County, with a population of 300 people;
Qa Ira, in the same county, with a population of 210 peo-
ple, hardly enough to justify the expectation of progress
in which its name was born; Cumberland Court House, in
the same county, with a population of 90 people; Stoney
Point Mills, in the same county, with a population of 90
people; Prince Edward Court House, in Prince Edward
County, with a population of some 105 people; Marysville,
or Charlotte Court House, the county seat of Charlotte
County, with a population of 475 people, and Keysville,
in the same county, with a population of 70 people.
At these points, there was some little mercantile and
industrial activity in Randolph's time; perhaps, on the
whole, more than there is today, because of the extent to
which the transportation facilities connecting them with
» Martinis Gazetteer, 268.
i6o John Randolph of Roanoke
larger foci of population and business have been since
improved upon, as well as because of the extent to which
the concentration of capital, highly organized machinery,
and the adoption of new inventions and labor-saving
processes in these latter places have superseded small
local stores and plants and individual handicraftsmen.
At Maysville, there were four mercantile storfes, an apoth-
ecary shop, three taverns^ a tanner, two saddlers, two boot
and shoe manufacturers, a silversmith and watchmaker, a
milliner and mantua-maker, two wagon makers, two cabi-
net makers, three tailors, one tinplate worker, and one mil-
ler ; at Diuguidsville, three general stores, two groceries, a
tavern, a tobacco warehouse, a tanner, a saddler^ a wheel-
wright, a blacksmith, a cabinet maker, a tailor, a brick-
layer and stone mason ; and, in the neighborhood of Diu-
guidsville, there were two extensive ' ' manufacturing mills, ' '
and a grist and sawmill. At New Canton, there were three
mercantile stores, one tavern, a flour mill, a tan yard, and
a saddler. Four miles west of the village, was the Virginia
Flour Mills, apparently a plant of some little importance.
At Stonewall Mills, there were two mercantile stores, a
** manufacturing mill," a tailor, a shoemaker and a black-
smith. In Buckingham County, taken as a whole, there
were seven '* manufacturing flour mills, " capable of grind-
ing from 200,000 to 250,000 bushels of wheat annually;
five wool-carding establishments ; eight tan yards, and 40
grist mills. Slate was found in abundance on Slate River
within its limits, and there were gold mines within its
limits too, just profitable enough to cheat those who
worked them with what Dr. Johnson calls **the phantom
of hope." At Cartersville, there were five mercantile
stores, three groceries, a merchant mill, two builders of
threshing machines, two tan yards, a saddler, and a nimiber
of mechanics, such as wheelwrights, plowmakers, black-
smiths, shoemakers, etc. ; at Qa Ira three mercantile stores,
two taverns, a tobacco warehouse, a flour mill, two tailors,
Randolph's District i6i
two wheelwrights, two blacksmiths, and two plowmakers;
at Cumberland Court House a mercantile store, two
taverns, a boot and shoe factory, a saddler, a tailor, and
various mechanics ; and at Stoney Point Mills two mercan-
tile stores, a ** large manufacturing mill,** a wheelwright,
a blacksmith, a cooper, and a tailor. At Prince Edward
Court House there were, besides a number of "public and
private oflBces," a tan yard, a coach manufactory, and
various mechanics; at Sandy River Church a house of
entertainment, a mercantile store, and several mechanics;
and at Farmville, ten mercantile stores, two taverns, two
tobacco warehouses, five tobacco factories which em-
ployed 250 hands, a printing oflBce, a boot and shoe fac-
tory, a tan yard, two carpenters, a cabinet maker, two
blacksmith shops, a tailor, a wheelwright, a saddler, and
two milliners and mantua-makers. At Marysville there
were five mercantile stores, two well-kept taverns, three
boot and shoe factories, four wagon-makers' shops, each
of which employed eight or ten hands, a carriage maker,
two tailor shops, each of which employed a number of
hands, a tanner, three saddlers, three blacksmiths, a cabi-
net maker, and several house carpenters and bricklayers;
and at Keysville a mercantile store, a tavern, a boot and
shoe factory, two wagon makers, employing many hands,
a wool-carding machine on an extensive scale, a cotton gin,
and two blacksmiths.
These different places afforded a considerable vent for
the agricultural products of the sturounding country. At
Diuguidsville, 800 to 1200 hogsheads of tobacco were
annually received ; at Qa Ira, 300 to 500 hogsheads, and
at Farmville, 4,000 to 4,500. At Diuguidsville, 20,000
to 30,000 bushels of wheat were annually purchased.
Altogether, the flour mills of Buckingham County ground
from 250,000 to 350,000 bushels of wheat annually. The
mill at Cartersville ground from 20,000 to 30,000 bushels
annually, and the mill at fa Ira 28,000 to 30,000 bushels.
VOL. n — 1\
i62 John Randolph of Roanoke
The mills at these places were doubtless the larger mills
in Cumberland Coimty.
All of these figures in relation to population and indus-
trial conditions are taken from Martin's Gazetteer, which
was published in 1836, ' three years after Randolph's death,
and fully deserves the encomiimi of Prof. A. J. Morrison,
of Hampden-Sidney College, who, in his invaluable mono-
graph entitled The Beginnings of Public Education in
Virginia, 1776-1860, justly terms it a book of ** extra-
ordinary value. ** '
Farmville, the Gazetteer pronounced, '*one of the finest
towns in proportion to its size and commerce in Virginia. " ^
In addition to the little industrial centres, mentioned by
us, there were, of course, the blacksmith and wheelwright
shops which have always been found everywhere in Vir-
ginia hard by the cross-roads ** store" ; and, on the largest
plantations, the landowner usually had his own corps of
negro artisans. Nor should it be forgotten that, until the
Civil War, the loom and the spinning wheel were common
objects in the dwelling-houses of the Southside Virginia
people. From this summary, the reader can easily infer
how little there was in the economic conditions of Ran-
dolph's District to recommend a high protective tariff to
the favor of its people.
It was to the tobacco plant that the attention of Ran-
dolph's constituents was mainly given. Many thousands
of barrels of com were grown on the alluvial meadows of
the James, the Appomattox and the Staunton Rivers and
the other rivers, rivulets, creeks, and small water-courses,
with which Randolph's District was seamed ; and some hay
was grown on these streams too. But the fierce and pro-
longed heat of Southside Virginia, the thinness of much of
the uplands in that region, the dearth of lime in many of
its fields, its sparse population, its vast expanse of virgin
» Martin's Gazetteer, 134, 135, 150, 151, 160, 161, 268, 269.
»P. loi. »/d.,268.
Randolph's District 163
areas, and the lax industrial methods, born of its slave
labor, all conspired to discourage the intensive system of
cultivation by which its soil could have been readily made
to produce much larger crops of com and of certain kinds
of hay. No little wheat, oats, and red clover, however,
were grown on the hills of the district, and here and there
on the large plantations were to be seen good flocks and
herds of grazing animals.
Mrs. LeGrand's estate ran from Charlotte Court House
southwards about 3 miles, with a much narrower width.
On the south and west, it was bounded by the Little Roa-
noke and Randolph's Bushy Forest estate.' *'Most of
the land," Dr. James Waddell Alexander wrote to Dr.
Hall, **is covered with thick forests intersected with many
roads. The most fertile portion is the flat land through
which the stream above mentioned runs. The central
part is in the highest state of cultivation."^ In another
letter to Dr. Hall, he says that the wheat fields around
Charlotte Court House were often as much as 100 acres in
extent, and speaks of the large herds which gave a pastoral
eflfect to the landscape.^ Of little moment, however, in
the lives of the people in Randolph's District as a whole, as
compared with tobacco, were cereals and livestock. The
protracted summer weather gave the plant a full oppor-
tunity to mature; the boundless forests supplied an un-
limited quantity of fuel with which to cure it, and, when
it exhausted the fertility of one field, a fresh area, on which
it could be produced in quantity, could be readily re-
claimed in the form of **new grounds" from the woods.
In one of his letters to Dr. Hall, Dr. Alexander mentioned
the fact that $200.00 worth of tobacco had been raised on
one little island of less than two acres. ^ Moreover, the
habits formed by a thorough familiarity with tobacco
'40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters, v. i, 102. 'Ibid.
« Apr. 20, 1855, Id., V. 2, 207.
< Oct. 13, 1838, Id., V. I, 269.
i64 John Randolph of Roanoke
culture dated back to the earliest colonial history of Vir-
ginia. All the world has heard of "King Cotton,'* but
** King Tobacco ** was quite as despotic a potentate within
his narrower domain, and. in one form or another, the
Southside Virginian was his slave from one end of the
year to the other. Tobacco was rarely off his hands, or
out of his mouth. When he was not sowing its seed,
transplanting it, working it, priming it, suckering it, worm-
ing it, cutting it, sheltering it or curing it, he was manipu-
lating it or marketing it. Often he was busy with one
crop of it before he had disix)sed of its i)redecessor. He
discussed it at the coimtry store and before and after
service at the country church. At times, when it was
being cured, he literally slept with it ; and he smoked and
chewed it as if he revelled in his servitude to it. He even
composed a new glossary of terms to fit its exactions.
"Alack," wrote Dr. Alexander to Dr. Hall on one occasion,
"when shall my ears cease to be molested with endless har-
angues upon tobacco? I declare it to be the most fertile
subject known among men. The glossary of the planters
would compose a volimie, and their discotirse is stark naught
without an interpreter. What would you understand by such
slang as this? 'Have you primed your crap Col. Gouge?'
(Every man is on the army list.) 'No sir, I had to clod in May
and my 'bacco in the low groimds is fired.' *I sent my last
crap to Farmville; they made a break and said it was funked too
lean and fired too much. It was struck too soon and was in
nice order, * * Well F ve got through priseing. The weather was
so giwy that the tobacco was in high order to come and go,
etc.* "'(a)
The technical language of the planter was gibberish to
Dr. Alexander, but not to one to the manner bom, like
Randolph. Writing to his niece from London on May 27,
1822, he said: "There were some noble pines at High
'July 3, 1827, 40 Yrs* Familiar Letters, v. i, 106.
Randolph's District 165
Leigh which a Virginian overseer would soon have down
for tobacco sticks. " '
Southside Virginia, during Randolph's career, was a good
illustration of the economic peril which any community
runs in having all its eggs in one basket. Between 1799
and 1830, the price of tobacco underwent some extra-
ordinary fluctuations, and the prosperity of Southside
Virginia rose and fell with them. The period between
1799 and 1 81 6 was signalized by a remarkable improve-
ment in the fortunes of its people. Upon this subject
there are some timely remarks in the "Discourse by Hugh
Blair Grigsby on the Lives and Characters of the Early
Presidents and Trustees of Hampden-Sidney College,"
delivered at the centenary of the founding of the college
on June 14, 1876. After saying that it was not tmtil the
close of the War of 18 12 that the first burst of sunshine
after the Revolutionary War descended upon Prince
Edward Cotmty and its vicinage, he adds these words :
"Before that time, when the traveler visited the gatherings
at chxirches and on court days, and entered the dwellings of
the people he saw none of those signs of prosperity which 10
years later were everywhere visible. The houses were mainly
of wood, and rarely had more than two rooms on a floor;
the furniture was always made at home, was plain and not
abundant, and even, in houses of men of wealth, paint was
used sparingly, and in many cases, not at all. The dress of
the inhabitants was mainly domestic and, when imported goods
were used, a single suit of broadcloth or a dress of silk lasted
for a number of years. Before 1815, four-wheeled carriages
were rare, and were destitute of ornaments; the family vehicle
was a large and massive gig, which could hold as great a weight
as a single horse could pull. Before the close of 1815, a new
era dawned : The high prices of tobacco were soon seen in the
dress of the people, in the elegance of their carriages, and in the
beauty of their horses ; in the rise of many large and handsome
wood and brick houses, and in the improvement of the face of
* Garland, v. 2, 180.
i66 John Randolph of Roanoke
the country. Twelve years after 1815, when I attended a
commencement of the college, the large collection of people of
both sexes and of all ages, who filled every place in the chiirch,
and who were clad in modem and costly apparel, and the
ntmiber of gigs and carriages, adorned with curtains and
beautified with silver gilt, indicated the vast increase of the
general wealth in that interval."'
But this advance of wealth must have been the incre-
ment of the earlier years after 18 12, for, confessedly, the
decade between 1820 and 1830 was one of such widespread
pecxmiary depression in Virginia that, to some eyes, it
seemed as if the State was declining into a condition of
almost hopeless atrophy.* The year 18 19 was a year of
general financial distress throughout the United States,
and the eflfects of this distress in Southside Virginia are
stated by Randolph in his pungent way in a letter written
by him to Captain West, his sea-captain friend, on April
30, 1828.
"Cartbrsvillb, on Jambs River,
April 30, 1828."
"My dear Captain: — ^Just as I mounted my horse on
Monday morning at Washington, your truly welcome and
friendly letter was put into my hands. I arrived here this
evening a little before simset, after a ride on horseback of
thirty-five miles. Pretty well, you'll say, for a man whose
lungs are bleeding, and with a *church-yard cough,* which
gives so much pleasure to some of your New York editors of
newspapers. ... I am never so easy as when in the saddle.
Nevertheless, if *a gentleman' (we are all gentlemen now-a-days)
who received upwards of £300 sterling for me merely to hand
it over, had not embezzled it by applying it to his own pur-
poses, I should be a passenger with you on the eighth. I tried
to raise the money by the sale of some property, that only
twelve months ago I was teased to part from (lots and houses
in Farmville, seventy miles above Petersburgh, on Appomattox
' P. 45- ' Wm, B. Giles, by D. R. Anderson, 212.
Randolph's District 167
nver), but could not last week get a bid for it. Such is the
poverty, abject poverty and distress of this whole country. I
have known land (part of it good and wood land) sell for one
dollar an acre, that, ten years ago, would have commanded
ten dollars, and last year five or six. Four fine negroes sold
for three hundred and fifty dollars, and so in proportion. But
I must quit the wretched subject. My pay, as a member of
Congress, is worth more than my best and most productive
plantation, for which, a few years ago, I cotdd have got eighty
thousand dollars, exclusive of slaves and stock. I gave, a few
years since, twenty-seven thousand dollars for an estate. It
had not a house or a fence upon it. After putting it in fine
order, I found that, so far from my making one per cent, or
one-half or one-fourth of one per cent, it does not clear expenses
by about seven hundred and fifty dollars per anntmi, over and
above all the crops. Yet, / am to be taxed for the benefit of
wool-spinners, &c., to destroy the whole navigating interest
of the United States; and we find representatives from New-
Bedford, and Cape Ann, and Marblehead, and Salem, and
Newburyport, voting for this, if they can throw the molasses
overboard to lighten the ship Tariff, She is a pirate under a
black flag."'
No one had a keener sense than Randolph of the fact
that the conduct of a plantation in Southside Virginia
went round and round in a circle like a horse hitched to
one of the revolving shafts which furnished the power for
threshing wheat at granaries on the larger plantations in
that region before the invention of the modem portable
threshing-machine, (a) ' ' Farming in Virginia. ' ' he said,
'*goes in a circle; the negroes raise the com, the hogs eat
the com, and the negroes eat the hogs, &c. '**
When Randolph wrote to Josiah Quincy that, if he came
to Charlotte County, he would introduce him to a small
school of intelligent freeholders, he was not over-apprais-
ing the character of his constituents. As a rule, they were
» The New Mirror, v. 2, 71, Nov. 4, 1843.
* Recollections of a Long Life, by Jos. Packard, 1 10.
i68 John Randolph of Roanoke
remarkably well informed about the public men, and inti-
mately conversant with the political issues, of their time;
indeed, it would have been better for them, if they had
imitated their fellow Democrats of the North, and not lost
sight of the fact that Congress was a great business instru-
mentality as well as a theatre for oratorical displays and
the conflict of political theories. Morris Birkbeck, an
English traveler, visited Petersburg, Va., in 1817, and,
discussing the Virginians that he met there, he says :
** I never saw in England an assemblage of countrymen who
would average so well as to dress and manners. None of them
reached anything like style, and very few descended to the
shabby. As it rained heavily, everybody was confined the
whole day to the tavern after the race, which took place in the
forenoon. The conversation, which this afforded me an
opportunity of hearing, gave me a high opinion of the
intellectual cultivation of these Virginian farmers.**'
The compliment is all the more significant, as it was
preceded by the averment that, while a Virginian planter
was a Republican in politics, and exhibited the high spirit
and independence of that character, he was a slave-holder,
irascible, and too often lax in morals ; and was said to carry
a dirk about with him as a common appendage to the dress
of the planter in that part of Virginia. It is not unlikely
that some Southside planters did have such a weapon,
because we know that on one occasion Randolph wrote to
Theodore Dudley for a dirk which he had left behind him
at Roanoke. * A gentry, that was not too peaceful for the
duelling pistol, might well be contentious enough at times
for the dirk.
One more quotation from the agreeable letters of Dr.
James Waddell Alexander to Dr. Hall, and we shall be
prepared to lift the curtain again upon the figure of Ran-
« Notes on a Journey in America, 3d Ed., London, p. 16.
• Farmville, Nov. 6, 1813, Letters to a Y, R., 143.
Randolph's District 169
dolph as he appeared upon the court-green rostrum of
Southside Virginia.
"Charlotte, April io, 1827."
" I do not remember in any 'letters from the South' a descrip-
tion of a Virginia court-day, and, as I know of nothing which
exhibits in more Uvely colours the distinctive traits of the
State character, I will employ a little time in sketching a scene
of this kind, which presented itself on Monday, the 2d of
April. The court of Charlotte Co. is regularly held upon
the first Monday of every month, and there is usually a large
concourse of people. This was an occasion of peculiar inter-
est, as elections for Congress and the State Legislature were
then to take place. As the day was fine, I preferred walking,
to the risk of having my horse alarmed, and driven away by the
hurly-burly of such an assemblage. In making my way along
the great road, which leads from my lodgings to the place of
public resort, I found it all alive with the cavalcades of planters
and coimtry-folk going to the raree show. A stranger would
be forcibly struck with the perfect familiarity with which
all ranks were mingling in conversation, as they moved along
upon their fine pacing horses. Indeed, this sort of equality
exists to a greater degree here than in any country with
which I am acquainted. Here were young men, whose main
object seemed to be the exhibition of their spirited horses,
of the true race breed, and their equestrian skill. The great
majority of persons were dressed in domestic, undyed cloth,
partly from economy, and partly from a State pride, which
leads many of our most wealthy men, in opposing the tariff, to
reject all manufactures which are protected by the Government.
A man would form a very incorrect estimate of the worldly
circumstances of a Virginia planter who should measure his
finances by the fineness of his coat. When I came near to the
village, I observed hundreds of horses tied to the trees of a
neighbouring grove, and further on could descry an immense
and noisy multitude covering the space around the court-
house. In one quarter, near the taverns, were collected the
mob, whose chief errand is to drink and quarrel. In another,
was exhibited a fair of all kinds of vendibles, stalls of mechanics
170 John Randolph of Roanoke
and tradesmen, eatables and drinkables, with a long line of
Yankee wagons, which are never wanting on these occasions.
The loud cries of salesmen, vending wares at public auction,
were mingled with the vociferation of a stump orator, who, in
the midst of a countless crowd, was advancing his claims as a
candidate for the House of Delegates. I threaded my way
into this living mass, for the purpose of hearing the oration. A
grey-headed man was discoursing upon the necessity of amend-
ing the State Constitution, and defending the propriety of
calling a convention. His elocution was good, and his argu-
ments very plausible, especially when he dwelt upon the very
unequal representation in Virginia. This, however, happens
to be the unpopular side of the question in our region and the
populace, while they respected the age and talents of the man
showed but faint signs of acquiescence. The candidate, upon
retiring from the platform on which he had stood, was fol-
lowed by a rival, who is well known as his standing opponent.
The latter kept the people in a roar of laughter by a kind of
dry humour which is peculiar to himself. Although far inferior
to the other in abilities and learning, he excels him in all those
qualities which go to form the character of a demagogue. He
appealed to the interests of the planters and slave owners, he
turned into ridicule all the arguments of the former speaker,
and seemed to make his way to the hearts of the people. He
was succeeded by the candidate for the Senate, Henry A.
Watkins, of Prince Edward, a man of great address and
suavity of manner; his speech was short but pungent and
efficient, and, although he lost his election, he left a most
favourable impression upon the public mind. We had still
another address from one of the late delegates who proposed
himself again as a candidate. Before commencing his oration,
he announced to the people that, by a letter from Mr. Randolph,
he was informed that we should not have the pleasure of seeing
that gentleman, as he was confined to his bed by severe illness.
This was a sore disappointment. It was generally expected
that Mr. R. would have been present, and I had cherished the
hope of hearing him once in my life. It would give you no
satisfaction for me to recount to you the several topics of party
politics upon which the several speakers dilated. We
Randolph's District 171
proceeded (or rather as many as could, proceeded) to the court-
house, where the polls were opened. The candidates, six in
number, were ranged upon the Justices' bench, the clerks were
seated below, and the election began, viva voce. The throng and
confusion were great, and the result was that Mr. Randolph
was unanimously elected for Congress, Col. Wyatt for the
Senate, and the two former members to the Legislature of the
State. After the election, sundry petty squabbles took place
among the persons who had been opposing one another in the
contest. Towards night, a scene of unspeakable riot took place ;
drinking and fighting drove away all thought of politics and many
a man was put to bed disabled by wounds and drunkenness.
This part of Virginia has long been celebrated for its breed of
horses. There is scrupulous attention paid to the preserva-
tion of the immaculate English blood. Among the crowd on
this day, were snorting and rearing fourteen or fifteen stallions,
some of which were indeed fine specimens of that noble crea-
ture. Among the rest, Mr. Randolph's celebrated English horse,
Roanoke, who is nine years old, and has never been 'backed.'
That which principally contributes to this great collection of
people on our court days is the fact that all public business and
all private contracts are settled at this time. All notes are made
payable on these days, &c., &c. But you must be tired with
Charlotte Court; I am sure that I am."^
What Dr. Alexander has to say about the drinking and
fighting, in which the court day described by him ended,
has not escaped, we are sure, the attention of the reader.
That such excesses were more or less limited to the satur-
nalia of court day and to the rabble, we must infer from
the tribute paid by him to the moral character of the peo-
ple of Charlotte County, which we have already quoted,
and from the fact that, in one of his letters to Dr. Hall, he
also stated that temperance agitations were hardly neces-
sary in Charlotte County as the body of the people had
always been temperate . ^ The truth is that anyone who has
' Mar. 13, 1S27, 40 Yfs.' Familiar Letters, v. i, 98.
* Feb. 23, 1842, Id., V. I, 350.
172 John Randolph of Roanoke
witnessed the tremendous strides made by temperance in
the matter of intoxicating liquors, within the 40 years pre-
ceding the adoption of the i8th amendment to the Federal
Constitution, can easily decide how unfair it would be to
judge the habits of Randolph's day by those of even forty
years ago. We say nothing about fighting, because, wher-
ever there is excessive drinking, there will be fighting.
The companionship between the two is as close as that
which led Alexander Pope in his sententious way to affirm
that every liquorish mouth must have a lecherous tail.
In Randolph's time excessive drinking was common in
every part of our country. In his Advice to Connecticut
Folks, published in 1786, Noah Webster, Jr., says:
'*Not a mechanic or a laborer goes to work for a merchant
but he carries home a bottle of rum. Not a load of wood comes
to town but a gallon bottle is tied to a cart stake to be filled
with rum. Scarcely a woman comes to town but a gallon bottle
is tied to the cart stake to be filled with rum."
Webster computed that the people of Connecticut were
then spending £ 90,000 a year for rtim — b, sum somewhat
in excess of the expenses of the State Government. Judge
Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar could recall the fact that in
1824, when he was eight years old, he and another boy
picnicked in the woods, and that his mother, a Connecticut
woman, gave them a bottle of pimch to take with them.
He also remembered that, during his boyhood, when any
young child died at Concord, Massachusetts, **the pall-
bearers were selected among the yoimg boys, and a room
was set aside for them, in which a table was set with bot-
tles of rum, whiskey and gin, and each of the boys freely
partook."' And Josiah Quincy, Jr., is not picturing
Silenus and his purple faced crew, but the members of one
of the Blowing Clubs of Harvard in or about the year
1 82 1, when he pens these words:
« Editorial in New York Times, Oct. 13, 191 8.
Randolph s District i73
"One of these societies, which is yet in existence, though it is
to be hoped that the habits of its members have improved, was
wont to have a dinner on exhibition days. After the exercises
in the Chapel, the brethren would march to Porter's Tavern,
preceded by a full band; and an attempt was made to return
in the same way. First, would come the band, the only steady
part of the show, whose music attracted a crowd of lookers-on.
Then came, reeling and swaying from side to side, a mass of
Bacchanals in all stages of intoxication.**' (a)
Everjrwhere in the United States, intoxicating liquors
have now been placed under the ban of the law, and
nowhere did the public opinion, which has brought about
this result assert itself sooner than in rural communities
in Virginia like Randolph's District. Indeed, in some of
them the general prohibitory measure, which Virginia
adopted in advance of the adoption of the i8th amend-
ment to the Federal Constitution, and that amendment
were merely declaratory of a condition which an irresisti-
ble public sentiment had already decreed. While we are
dwelling upon a county court day in Charlotte County,
we might add that nothing could be more strikingly indica-
tive of the conservative character of the people of Ran-
dolph's District than the infrequency of the changes that
have taken place in County Court Clerkships in it except
as the result of death or resignation. Cumberland
County was organized in 1748; Buckingham County in
1 761; Prince Edward County in 1754, and Charlotte
County in 1765. The first three clerks of Cumberland
County — a father, son, and grandson, — ^held the office in
succession for 100 years; the first three clerks of Prince
Edward County held it for the same length of time; the
first four clerks of Charlotte County held it for 98 years,
and in 160 years Buckingham County has had but some
six clerks.
* Figures of the Past^ 43.
CHAPTER VI
Randolph on the Hustings
Such, so to speak, was the sounding-board under which
Randolph spoke on the hustings in his District. How
effectively he spoke to both the eye and the ear of his
Southside Virginia auditors we are in a position fully to
know. In his Recollections, William B. Green, a resident
of Chariotte County, who cherished a decidedly hostile
feeling towards him, says of him :
** When I first knew him he was about 35 or 36 years of age.
He was then a Republican, and hated Federalism with a
perfect hatred; but, notwithstanding this, he was always
regarded in heart and in sentiment an Englishman to the core.
In his earlier speeches, he was guilty of what might be con-
sidered as bad taste at the present day, namely : too frequently
quoting and making allusions to English authors — Milton,
Shakespeare, Tillotson, Sherlock, Burke, and so on. The
coincidence of manner and thought between the speeches of
Mr. Randolph and the writings of Latu-ence Sterne has always
appeared to my mind so striking that I have not been able to
resist the belief that he had, without making the acknowledg-
ment, appropriated the manner and thought of that great writer.
But, however this may have been, I am free to acknowledge
that, in my poor judgment, Mr. Randolph was by far the
greatest and most interesting speaker I have ever heard or
ever expect to hear."*
In the same Recollections, Green says of the speech
made by Randolph at Charlotte Court House in 1833, i^
« Bouldin, 27.
174
Randolph on the Hustings i75
support of the series of resolutions, drawn by him, which
condemned the Nullification Proclamation of Andrew
Jackson :
"He was anxious ... to have the speech which he was
about to deliver fully taken down, but fearing that this might
be impracticable, he insisted that the strong points and the
biting parts at least should be preserved, and, in conclusion,
said: *When I say anything that tickles under the tail, be sure
to put it down.* Th^ speech was then commenced, and he
spoke for a considerable time with overwhelming power and
tmsurpassed eloquence. The resolutions were then passed.*'*
The following are the recollections of James W. Bouldin,
another resident of Charlotte County :
"The first time I saw Mr. Randolph was at Prince Edward
Court in October 1808 or 09. He was then at his zenith. For
the first time since his first election, which was closely con-
tested with Powhatan Boiling, some opposition began to
discover itself to him in the District. It was said he was to
speak, and I rode twenty miles to hear him. I remember well
his appearance. When I saw him, he was approaching the
court-house, walking very slowly, and alone — a tall, spare,
straight man, very neatly dressed in summer apparel — shoes,
nankeen gaiters and pantaloons, white vest, drab cloth coat
of very fine quality, and white beaver hat. Though he had
no shape but that he was forked, and had very long arms, all
the way of the same size, with long bony fingers, with gloves on,
still he had a most graceful appearance. His bow, notwith-
standing it was slight, bending his body very little, and rather
leaning his head back than forward, was winning to those to
whom it was addressed, and seemed to carry with it marked
attention and respect. His eyes were hazel, of the darkest hue,
and had the appearance of being entirely black, unless you were
very near him. They opened round, and, when open, nearly
hid the lids, the dark long lashes only showing. Their
brilliancy surpassed any I have ever seen. His appearance
« Id., p. 178.
176 John Randolph of Roanoke
was remarkable and commanding, and would attract the atten-
tion of any one. His manner, though stately, possessed a
charm to those to whom he wished to make himself agreeable,
but had something terrible in it to those to whom he felt a
dislike. To mere strangers it was simply lofty and gracefxil.
'• • • •
"Very soon after Mr. Randolph made his appearance, the
people began to gather around the steps of the railing, where
those who addressed them generally stood. Much curiosity
was discovered to hear him, and I suppose of various kinds.
Politicians, I imagine, wished to hear what he had to say on
public affairs, and others for other reasons. My anxiety was
to hear a great orator speak. He made but a short address;
but I was much gratified. He was the first very great man
I had ever heard deliver a public speech.
"I remember his commencement. It was thus: 'After, an
absence, fellow-citizens, of nearly six months, I have returned
to the bosom of my constituents to be — chastised.' . . .
"I remember little else now of what he said literally. He
was defending himself against charges made of his having
deserted the Republican party.
**As to his manner, its fascination was felt by all who ever
heard him, and those who have not, can be little edified by any
attempt to describe it.'^ . . .
*' Probably Mr. Randolph's greatest efforts at speaking were
made during the canvass with Mr. Eppes, in which he was
beaten. I heard many of them, including the one at Prince
Edward court, in the Fall preceding the election. He was told
by a friend that this was considered to be the best speech he
ever made. He replied that it was the only time he ever felt
conscious of being eloquent, while speaking. He remarked
that he felt the truth of what Mark Antony said — 'Passion,
thou art catching* — that he felt the electricity passing from
him to the crowd, and from the crowd back to him.
"I remember but one expression, literally, during that
speech. Speaking of Bonaparte's strides to universal domin-
ion, he said : * He stood with one foot upon European, and the
other upon American, shores. It is said that Moloch smiled
' Bouldin, 47.
Randolph on the Hustings i77
at the blood of httman sacrifice running at the foot of the altar;
this great arch enemy of mankind is now grinning and smiling
at American blood, flowing in support of his inordinate ambi-
tion.'
"He spoke for an hour, perhaps, and, when he concluded, I
found myself musing and walking without any aim or object;
and looking around, found the crowd gradually dispersing in
the same mood. The Rev. Moses Hoge was sitting in a chair
opposite the speaker, and remained till I observed him, still
with his mouth open, and looking steadfastly in the same
direction. Parson Lyle was standing by him. Said Mr.
Hoge to Lyle, *I never heard the Uke before, and I never
expect to hear the like again. "'
** I remember verbatim a portion of the commencement of a
speech he made at Charlotte Court, which, from its peculiar
style of parenthesis, will be recognized by all who were ac-
quainted with his manner of expression. He was excusing
himself, on the grotmd of ill health, for declining the service of
the people, after their long continued confidence in him. He
said: *I am going across the sea to patch up and preserve a
shattered frame — a frame worn out in your service, and to
lengthen out yet a little longer, (hitherto certainly) not a very
happy existence; for, excepting the one upbraided by a guilty
conscience, no life can be more unhappy that that, the days
of which are spent in pain and sickness, and the nights in tra-
vail and sorrow. '
** During this address he remarked: * I was going to say in
the sincerity of the poet, but the sincerity of the poet is some-
what doubted; — I can say with truth, in the language of the
poet, —
*Fare ye well; and if forever.
Still forever, fare ye well. '
"Just as he had concluded, and was putting on his hat (he
always spoke with it off), as he was stepping down to the next
step, weak and somewhat tottering, he said: 'The flesh is
indeed weak, though the spirit is strong.**
•Bouldin, 51. ' /^.» 53-
VOL. IX — 13
178 John Randolph of Roanoke
**Mr. J. Robinson, a clergyman of distinguished ability,
dined with me the day on which he made this speech. He was
opposed to Mr. Randolph in politics, but was a great admirer
of his genius. He remarked : * He had not supposed that Mr.
Randolph had any pathos, as he had never before heard him
in that strain, but that now he was forced to confess, after
having heard all the distinguished orators of the then just past
age, from Patrick Henry down, that Mr. Randolph was the
most pathetic man he ever heard open his lips. *
**/ certainly saw tears roll down the cheeks of men who hated
him then, and would curse his memory now if he were named in
their presence.
*' I think these addresses did more to make firm his popular-
ity, which, during the war, had been a little shaken, than any-
thing he ever did. They soothed, softened, and set aside
much of the bitterness which had been engendered during
those bitter party conflicts.
"Though this was the first and only time I ever heard Mr.
Randolph deliver a speech wholly in this strain of pathos, and
sober wisdom and counsel, I had often witnessed touches of the
same in other speeches, and his power of fascination in private,
when he chose to exert it, with wonder and amazement."'
These recollections are valuable, because, in addition to
still more important reasons, they tend to confirm our
faith in human testimony by disclosing physical circum-
stances which enable us to understand why some of Ran-
dolph's contemporaries should have thought his eyes
hazel and others black.
Of equal value are the recollections of William H.
Elliott, a resident of Charlotte County :
**It has been said by some, who have heard Mr. Randolph
both in Congress and on the hustings, that on the latter theatre
he made his most fascinating and brilliant displays. I never
heard him in Congress, but I cannot conceive that anything he
uttered there could possibly surpass what I have heard on the
hustings.
« Bouldin, 53.
Randolph on the Hustings i79
**Most generally, whenever it was expected he would speak,
a large proportion of the crowd would anticipate his arrival
by some hour or two, and gather around the stand to secure a
close proximity to the speaker. But when he was seen to move
forward to the rostrum, then the court-house, every store, and
tavern, and peddler's stall, and auctioneer's stand, and private
residence, was deserted, and the speaker saw beneath him a
motionless mass of humanity, and a sea of upturned faces.
When he rose, with a deliberate motion, he took off his hat,
and made a slight inclination of the body, a motion in which
grace and humility seemed inexplicably blended. Now the
grace was natural, but the humility was affected, but with
such consiunmate address as to pass for genuine, except among
those who know that artis est celare artem. His exordium was
brief, but always peculiarly appropriate. His gestures were few
and simple, yet exactly no more or fewer than what the
occasion called for. With many public speakers, there seems
to be an unpruned luxuriance of gesticulation, laboring most
painfully to bring forth a mouse of an idea. But, in the case
of Mr. Randolph, the idea was sure to be bigger than the
gesture that accompanied it. His voice was unique, but yet so
perfect was his pronunciation, and so sharp the outlines of
every sound, that, as far as his voice could be heard, his words
could be distinguished. In short, his speaking was exquisite
vocal music. An accurate ear could distinguish, as he went
along, commas, semi-colons, colons, full stops, exclamation
and interrogation points, all in their proper places. In advert-
ing to what he conceived to be the overruling agency of
Providence in the affairs of man, no minister of the gospel could
raise his eyes to Heaven with a look more impressively rever-
ential. If the reader will look at Hamlet's advice to the
players, and conceive it to be punctually followed to the letter,
Shakspeare will give him a better idea of Randolph's oratory
than he can derive from any other source. He seemed to have
discarded from his vocabulary most of those sonorous ses-
quipedalia verba, which enter so largely into the staple of
modem oratory, and to have trimmed down his language to the
nudest possible simplicity consistent with strength. When
he had gotten fully warmed with the subject, all idea of any-
i8o John Randolph of Roanoke
thing nearer to perfection in eloquence was held in utter abey-
ance, and, when he concluded, all felt that they had never
heard the like before."*
And these are the recollections of Dr. C. H. Jordan, a
resident of Halifax County, Va., who, after saying that
Randolph had the longest fingers that he had ever seen,
goes on as follows :
**His head was not very large, but was symmetrical in the
highest degree. His eyes were brilliant beyond description,
indicating to a thoughtful observer a brain of the highest
order. No one could look into them without having this truth
so indelibly impressed upon his own mind that Time's busy
Fingers may strive in vain to efface the impression. His eye,
his forefinger and his foot were the members used in gesticu-
lation; and, in impressing a solemn truth, a warning, or a
proposition to which he wished to call the attention of his
audience particularly, he could use his foot with singular and
thrilling effect. The ring of the slight patting of his foot was
in perfect accord with the clear musical intonations of that
voice which belonged only to Mr. Randolph. In his appeals
to High Heaven, the God of the Universe, the Final Judge of all
the Earth, with his eyes turned heavenward, and that *long
bony finger' pointing to the skies, both gradually lowering as
the appeal or invocation closed, the moral effect was so thrilling
that every man left the scene with (for the time at least) a
better heart than he carried there.
**The*long bony finger' really appeared, when used in gesticu-
lation, to have no bone in it; for, when it had accomplished
what it had been called into action for, it would fall over on the
back of his hand, almost as limp as a string, as if, having done
its work, it sought repose."
Dr. Jordan then passes to the remarkable speech de-
Uvered by Randolph at HaUfax Court House in the spring
of 1827:
' Bouldin, 55.
Randolph on the Hustings i8i
"He came to breast the flood then rolling on from the
western portion of the State for a convention. In spite of all
his efforts, however, the stream increased, until it found tem-
porary rest in the convention of 1829. It had been known for
a long time and for many miles around, that he would be there
upon that occasion, and would address the people on that
question. The time drew nigh; the people everywhere were
talking about it; expectation ran high. The day arrived and
the crowd was immense, the largest I ever saw at a country
gathering, variously estimated at from six to ten thousand,
representing all the bordering counties in Virginia and North
Carolina.
**As the hour approached, every countenance beamed with
anticipation, or was grave with anxiety; for the weather was a
little inauspicious, and Mr. Randolph's health was bad. It
was known that he had reached Judge Leigh's, but fears were
entertained that he might be deterred by the weather. About
10 o'clock, however, the thin clouds vanished, and, about 11,
news passed like an electric current through the vast mtdtitude
that he was coming. In an instant, the crowd began moving
slowly and noiselessly towards the upper tavern. Scarcely had
they reached the summit of the slope between the court-house
and the tavern, when they saw him coming on horseback, his
carriage in the rear, driven by one of his servants. As he drew
near, the crowd simultaneously divided to each side of the
street, making a broad avenue along which he passed, hat in
hand, bowing gracefully to the right and to the left, until he
reached the lower tavern. The people, with uncovered heads,
silently returned the graceful salutation. As he passed on to
the lower tavern, the multitude followed in profound silence,
not a shout nor a word being heard. Alighting and going in
for a few moments, he soon reappeared, crossed the street,
ascended the steps leading over to the court-house, and
began."
Here follows a resum6 by Dr. Jordan of the topics on
which the speech descanted, including the agitation which
was under way for a change in the suffrage prescribed by
the existing constitution of Virginia.
1 82 John Randolph of Roanoke
At one point, declares Dr. Jordan, he drew a striking and
vivid picture of **the Old Ship of State" sailing amongst
the breakers, ** and, with extended arms and eyes raised to
Heaven, he threw his body forward (as if to catch her),
crying as he did so in a half-imploring, half-confident
tone, 'God save the Old Ship!'" ''It was," Dr. Jordan
says, "the most solemn, the most impressive gesture I
ever saw from any human being; and so powerful was the
impression made, that the whole multitude, many with
extended arms, seemed to move involuntarily forward, as
if to help save the sinking ship. "
From this point, Randolph passed on to other topics,
which Dr. Jordan recalled without difficulty after the
lapse of forty years; so lasting had been the impression
made upon his mind by the speech; and, finally, Randolph
concluded by warning his auditors against changes in the
Federal Constitution, under which they had Hved and
enjoyed all the blessings of a free and happy people.
Mind, gentlemen/' Dr. Jordan remembers him to have said,
how you touch it; how you set about with innovation. Once
gone, you may never restore it. Revolutions never go back,
but on and on they roll; no returning tide brings repose; no
bow of promise spans their dark horizon. On and on they go,
until all is swallowed up in the abyss of anarchy and ruin ! "
During the long and entertaining speech," Dr. Jordan says,
every man of both races, seemed bound to the earth on which
he stood; not one moved.'*
**The Convention, however, was called; Mr. Randolph was
elected to it; served with characteristic fidelity, and returned
to Halifax in 1829 [1830] to give an account of his stewardship.
By his arduous labors in that body, his health had suffered
greatly; he was too feeble to speak out doors, and the county
court, then in session, tendered him the court-house, which he
gratefully accepted. As he moved up to the bench, it was
apparent to every one that he lacked the physical ability to
entertain the people as he had done on the previous occasion.
Taking his stand on the cotmty court bench, and supporting
Randolph on the Hustings 183
•
himself with one hand on the railing, and the other on his cane,
he began by returning his thanks in a polite and graceful man-
ner to the worshipful court for their kindness in suspending
their business to accommodate one who needed so much their
consideration. He told them it must be plain to all that it was
the last speech he should ever make in Halifax. He gave a
succinct statement of all the various alterations (he would not
call them amendments) proposed to the Constitution, and
advised the people to vote against them."
Randolph's voice, we are told by Dr. Jordan, was
uncommonly shrill, ** but was of that soft, flute-like charac-
ter that always elicited admiration." Feeble as he was
for nearly his whole life, he could, Dr. Jordan further de-
clares, always so modulate it as to make every member
of the largest assemblies distinctly hear every word
that he uttered, and that without the least strain on his
vocal or respiratory organs. '
A timely supplement to these recollections is a narrative
by Col. Thomas S. Floumoy, who, when a lad, with his
father spent a night at Roanoke on the eve of the first
si>eech at Halifax Court House described by Dr. Jordan.
'*My father," this narrative says, ** inquired after Mr.
Randolph's health. His reply was: *John, I am dying; I shall
not live through the night.'
**My father informed him that we were on our way to Halifax
court. He requested us to say to the people on Monday,
court day, that he was no longer a candidate for the Conven-
tion; that he did not expect to live through the night, certainly
not till the meeting of the Convention.
*'He soon began to discuss the questions of reform and the
proposed changes in the Constitution. Becoming excited, he
seemed to forget that he was a * dying man.* In a short time,
we were invited to tea, and, when we returned to his room, we
found him again in a *dying* condition; but, as before, he soon
began to discuss the subject of the Convention; and, becoming
« Bouldin, 57.
1 84 John Randolph of Roanoke
•
more and more animated, he rose up in bed — my father and
myself being the only auditors — and delivered one of the most
interesting speeches, in conversational style, that it was ever
my good fortune to hear, occupying the time, from half -past
eight until midnight.
**The next morning, immediately after breakfast, Mr. Ran-
dolph sent for us again. We fotmd him again in a 'dying'
condition. He stated to us that he was satisfied that he would
not live through the day, and repeated his request that my
father would have it annotmced to the people of Halifax that
he declined being a candidate for the Convention. Once more
he became animated, while discussing the Convention, and
kept us till lo o'clock at his house. When we were about to
start, he took solemn leave of us, sajring: *In all probability
you will never see me again.*
"Before we reached Clark's Ferry, five miles distant, I heard
some one coming on horseback, pushing to overtake us, which
proved to be Mr. Randolph, with Johnny in a sulky following.
*'We traveled on together until we came to the road leading
to Judge Leigh's. Mr. Randolph then left us, to spend the
night with Judge Leigh. The next morning, Monday, he rode
nine miles to court, where an immense crowd of people had
assembled to hear him. He addressed them in the open air on
the subject of the Convention in a strain of argument and
sarcastic eloquence rarely equalled by any one."*
Most vivid of all are these Reminiscences of James M.
Whittle, a gifted lawyer of Pittsylvania County, Virginia:
** At March Term, 1 821, of Prince Edward County Court, it
was expected that Mr. John Randolph of Roanoke would be
present, on his way home from Washington city, on the close
of the then recent session of Congress. I was then a boy at
school in the neighborhood — ^in my sixteenth year. The
universal expectation of this event, as usual, induced a general
desire among the people to look upon this strange man, as
much so to those who had seen him from his youth up, [and]
to his constituents, whom he had represented in Congress for
> Bouldin, 62.
Randolph on the Hustings 185
more than twenty years, as to those who had derived their
impressions of him from the tongue of nmior alone. It was
near the time of the Congressional Election, for which he
stood a candidate; and, in the session just ended, had been
settled, as was supposed, the 'Missouri Question,' after [the]
convulsive struggles of two sessions. The crowd found at
court was much larger than usual, and throbbing with anxiety
to see — hoping to hear — a man, so extraordinary in all respects,
that a promiscuous mingling with my race, in many differing
phases, in the long years, which have since rolled away, has
failed to furnish me with a suggestion — much less a likeness —
of him.
**In a short time, after reaching the court-house, groups of
people were seen hurrying to a spot down the road some
hundred yards off. Joining the throng, I followed on, and dis-
covered a dense crowd surrounding a person in a sulky, drawn
by a gray horse, and, behind it, a negro seated on another of
the same color, apparently its match. The heads of these
animals were lifted high above the spectators, and looked down
upon them with disdainful pride. On approaching, it was
observed that the sulky and harness were deep black, with
brilliant plated mountings, the shafts bent to a painful seg-
ment of a circle, the horses of the best keep, as doubtless they
were of the highest blood. The servant, who was of the
profoundest sable, carried a high black portmanteau behind
him, and was attired in clothing of the same hue. Quite a
strong contrast — possibly designed — was exhibited between
the masses of intense darkness and the plating, the horses, the
teeth and shirt collar of the servant. The order of the whole
equipage was complete. The tenant of the sulky was as frail a
man as I have ever seen. He was conversing pleasantly with
the people.
**I heard nothing he said. He soon bowed gracefully to
the crowd, which gave way before him, and he passed on; it
following him. The throng increased as he proceeded to an
old-fashioned Virginia inn near the court-house, by which time
it was swollen by the addition of most of the persons on the
ground, and became a dense mass. A twitch was felt by some
of the spectators at observing so delicate a man at the mercy of
i86 John Randolph of Roanoke
apparently so terrific a horse, which seemed to have its driver
completely in its power, but which he managed with entire
composure. Mr. Randolph alighted with a feeble step, passed
through the porch of the inn into a passage, followed by a
crowd, and disappeared within a room, the door of which was
immediately closed. The people remained before the door of
the inn, awaiting his reappearance, without noise or confusion.
After lolling awhile, Mr. Randolph came out and proceeded
toward the court-house. The crowd followed — ^keeping a
respectful distance; by his side, walked some of his elderly and
prominent constituents, with whom he conversed familiarly
on the way. It happened t6 me to have a position from which
I could discern his form and action. He was the merest
skeleton of a man; any boy of fifteen could, likely, have
mastered him. His extreme emaciation may have magnified
his apparent height, which was about six feet. There seemed
to be a want of action about his knees, which were somewhat
in-tumed. He drew them up in walking, and did not throw
his feet boldly forward. More than the usual amount of the
bottom of the feet was seen as he moved, and he placed these
directly forward as the Indians do. On reaching the court-
house pale, he stopped and conversed with a good many people,
when a lawyer came up and introduced one of his brethren to
Mr. Randolph. The latter passed through the introduction
with commanding dignity and grace. Having passed over the
steps within the court-house yard, some of his constituents
solicited him to speak to the people; this he seemed reluctant
to do, but, after some importunity he consented, and retired
to a bench near by, put his elbows about his knees, inserted
his head between his hands and seemed to be in profound
meditation for a few moments. In this position, the want of
proportion between the length of his body and of his lower
limbs was striking, so much so that his knees seemed to
intrude themselves into his face. He then approached the
steps with a languid and infirm tread, ascended them, took off
his hat, and made his bow to his audience in the most impres-
sive and majestic manner that can be conceived. It may be
doubted whether there lives in America a man who can do this
as he did it. His countenance and manner were solemn —
Randolph on the Hustings 187
funereal. Subsequent information enabled me to account for
what would seem to have been without occasion. He had
just emerged from a contest in Congress, running through two
sessions, into which he had thrown his whole power; the result
of which had filled him with apprehensions of the ruin of the
Union, and, from the rebound of the loosened tension, he was
left sick and solemn. The outer man was now fully presented
to those before him. He was evidently a great sufferer from
disease, and, likely, the sturdy working of his impatient
intellect had strained too severely the feeble case which con-
tained it. He appeared to be the Englishman and Indian
mixed; the latter assuming the outer, the former the larger,
part of the inner, man. His dress was all English — all over.
His hat was black; his coat was blue, with brilliant metallic
buttons and velvet collar; his breeches and vest drab, with
fair-topped English boots and massive silver spurs — likely
they were ancestral; his watch ribbon sustained a group of
small seals — ^heirlooms, it may be, from times beyond Crom-
well. His age must have been about forty-three; his hair was
bright brown, straight, not perceptibly gray, thrown back
from his forehead and tied into a queue, neither long nor thick.
His complexion was swarthy; his face beardless, full, round
and plump; his eye hazel, brilliant, inquisitive, proud; his
mouth was of delicate cast, well suited to a small head and
face, filled with exquisite teeth, well kept as they could be;
his lips painted, as it were, with indigo, indicating days of
suffering and nights of torturing pain. His hands were as fair
and delicate as any girl's. Every part of his dress and person
was evidently accustomed to the utmost care.
**His face was the most beautiful and attractive to me I
had almost ever seen. There was no acerbity about it that
day, his manner was calm and bland, though sustained by a
graceful and lofty dignity. It was apprehended that a body
so frail encased a group of shattered and tremulous nerves, and
that the prominence of his position, and what was expected of
him, might put these in an ague of agitation. Though he was
as much excited as a speaker could well be, yet he did not
betray his emotion by any quivering of lip, tremor of a nerve,
or hurry of a word. He seemed in this, as in most other
1 88 John Randolph of Roanoke
respects, to differ from all other men. He was calm, slow and
solemn throughout his address. The text of it, as has been
intimated, was the 'Missouri Compromise,' and he expended
not more than fifteen minutes in its delivery. His manner
was deliberate beyond any speaker I have ever heard. This
so differed from my expectation of him, as to dispel the ideal of
tempestuous rapidity, which his cjmic and impassioned repu-
tation had inspired. It was obvious, however, that the supreme
mastery which he had over himself was essential to the deadly
aim of his arrow, and the fatal mixing of the poison in which
he dipped it. He stood firm in his position, his action and
grace seemed to be from the knee up. His voice was that of a
well-toned flageolet, the key conversational, though swelled to
its utmost compass. The grandeur of his mien and his im-
pressive salutation may have composed his audience into the
deep silence which prevailed, but the uttering a few words dis-
closed a power of engaging attention which I have met with in
no other man — his articulation. Without this, it is hard to
conceive how, in the open air, he could have been so distinctly
heard by so large a mass. He was greatly aided too by his
self-possession, as in his feeble state it must have been essential
to command every faculty and every art which could contri-
bute to the result desired. Not only every word and syllable,
but it seemed that every letter of every word in every syllable,
was distinctly sounded (there was a perceptible interval, it
appeared, between each of his words, as they dropped one by
one from his lips) ; and that he had supplied himself with a
given quantum of speech before he commenced, determined by
its judicious use to accomplish a proposed effect. . . .
**I did not comprehend the subject he was discussing, nor
know even its leading facts; but he dwelt chiefly on the dis-
solution of the Union as the effect of the compromise; and here
Roscius did well act his part. As if startled by the bursting
asimder of the materials of some massive building, in which he
was, he drew up his shoulders, his head seemed to sink between
them, his bust was bent forward, and his face filled with horror.
His concluding words: 'We fought manfully the good fight,
and we are beaten,' seem inadequate to any oratorical effect;
but Roscius took them up, and equipped them for their
Randolph on the Hustings 189
work. The speaker must allude to the faithful valor of the
combat — how 'manfully* it was fought. Here the fever-
parched lips were compressed, the finger pointed to the skies
and, bowing in sad but lofty recognition of his fate, and with 8
countenance hung with pictures of anxiety, came the words
— *We are beaten'; and he retired."'
When the Virginia Convention of 1829-30 adjourned,
the first act of Randolph was to make this entry in his 1830
Journal: "Convention dissolved. Laiis Deo.''^ And his
next was to render an account of his stewardship to his
constituents at Charlotte Court House on court-day, in
the month of April, 1830, and we have good reason to
believe that his speech on this occasion was one of the
most remarkable of his whole career. The Rev. Dr. Wm.
S. Plumer declared that his judgment, after the lapse of
nearly forty-seven years, was that it was one of the most
effective speeches that he had ever heard. **lt was
conclusive, " he affirmed. **No one asked any questions.
The old men wept. "^ Speaking, in the course of the ad-
dress, of the trust that had been committed to him by his
constituents, after referring to himself characteristically
as being full of bruises and putrefying sores from the crown
of his head to the soles of his feet, and solemnly asking,
"People of Charlotte, which of you is without sin?" he
exclaimed: "Take it back! Take it back!" with such a
dramatic gesture, as if he were rolling a great stone from
his breast, that one of his auditors afterwards described
himself as instinctively recoiling in fear for his personal
safety.^ While Randolph was speaking, a piece of paper
on which he had jotted some notes, slipped from his fingers,
and fluttered down unnoticed by the throng to the feet of
young Jacob Michaux, who quietly planted his foot on it
with a view to preserving it as a souvenir, but so com-
pletely was his attention diverted from it by the sway of
» Bouldin, 64. * Va. Hist, Soc, a Bouldin, 169.
*Id,, 170.
190 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph's eloquence that he forgot all about it until the
meeting had dispersed and he was a mile away from the
scene. *
This time the dominant note of Randolph's address
was pathos. On another occasion, one of his auditors,
powerless any longer to repress his compassion when
Randolph, to use one of his own expressions, was giving
someone a **sack full of sair bones, "^ cried out, **Stop!
Stop ! Mr. Randolph, I would not treat a dog so. " ^
Nor are we at a loss to know just what Randolph was on
the hustings during the last years of his life, when he was
the object of an almost morbid public curiosity; partly
because of the eccentricities and excesses, which made him
a kind of raree show, and partly because of the garrulous,
yet sparkling, stream of improvisation which he was still
capable of poiu-ing out without stint, despite a pathetically
diseased body and mind. Among his auditors, after he
returned from Russia, was, as we have seen, the Rev. John
S. Kirkpatrick, (a) who has also sketched his personal
appearance for us in these words :
"The first time I saw him was at Prince Edward C. H.,
November, 1831. I was a student at Hampden-Sidney
College, a mile and a half distant from the Court House. It
being what was then known as County Court Day, occurring
once in each month, the students, by usage, rather than by
formal law, had permission to spend the day, with all the other
citizens of the County, including the members of the Faculty,
in the Court-House Yard. Not knowing that Mr. Randolph
would be there, or that anything of general interest was con-
templated, I went to the place merely to show respect to a
time-honored usage, the more conscientiously, because I thus
honored and helped to perpetuate the prescriptive monthly
holiday. When I reached the place, about eleven o'clock, Mr.
Randolph was then speaking, but I do not think he had been
speaking longer than ten or fifteen minutes. I remained in
« Marion Harland's Autobiography , 317.
• Garland, v. 2, 159. * Bonldin, 95,
Randolph on the Hustings 191
the Court House where the meeting was held, standing on my
feet, from 1 1 o'clock until sunset, all the while, with the excep-
tion of twenty to thirty minutes, which were occupied by two
other gentlemen in some personal explanations; all the while
listening to Mr. Randolph.
**When, after some effort, I obtained a position which gave
me a view of him, I saw an old man, very feeble, with a mini-
mum of flesh, just enough to authorize you to aflSrm that it was
not a skeleton or mummy you were looking at; the skin of the
face wearing that special hue into which the soft, roseate
complexion of the young woman is often changed by time and
exposure; of medium height, yet seeming tall from the extreme
slendemess of the figure; sitting in the chair appropriated to
the presiding officer of the Court; a friend seated on each
side of him to assist him in rising when, for a change of position,
or in the flush of unusual excitement from speaking, he wotdd
stand for two or three minutes; having a small table nearly in
front of him, within easy reach, on which were placed four
bottles, of the ordinary size of 'black bottles' ; two of them
closely covered with buckskin, and two with green baize,
flanked by as many glasses — some wine-glasses, and others
ordinary tumblers. His features were regular and delicately
shaped; the forehead low, so as to need no banging to conceal
the towering intellect; the chin long and the more pointed by
the want of flesh. His hair, which was of the special shade of
black I have often noticed in the hair of our American Indians
(he was proud of his alleged descent from the Princess Poca-
hontas), was softened by intermingled threads of silver gray;
it was parted in the middle and was long enough to fall on his
shoulders. His chin was as innocent of a covering as when on
that memorable day in the porch of the old Tavern at Char-
lotte C. H. he was derided by the admirers of Patrick Henry as
the beardless boy. The most striking feature was the eye;
and that is simply indescribable. It was dark ; to me it seemed
deeply black; and yet Mr. Garland, his most accurate bio-
grapher, says it was of dark hazel color. The eyes were small,
and the muscles and ligaments so disposed around the balls
as to cause the eyes to appear circular or nearly so. But,
although the aspect was not fierce, nor otherwise unpleasant,
192 John Randolph of Roanoke
how penetrating the glance from those twinkling orbs! They
seemed to look through you into your very soul, and to read
your thoughts and inmost feelings. Then they were so rapid
in their motion, it was as though they were tiuned on you, and
on all in every part of the room at the same instant. There
was no escape from their ubiquitous scouting. I have never
seen eyes in which there was so marvelous power — ^that had in
them so incisive oratory. And yet the eyes were hardly equal
in potency to the voice. That was clear, ringing, shrill, pierc-
ing; still, not harsh nor rasping; on the contrary, it was smooth,
melodious, musically charming. It was, to use the terms of
the music-books, set on the key of the female voice, an octave
higher than that of the male; the key so effectively adapted to
the purpose of scolding that some who possess it seem to feel
it would be a neglect of opportunity not to employ it in its
appropriate work.
**0n the two occasions when I heard Mr. Randolph in public
speeches, he never raised his voice above the conversational
tone; yet he was heard in every part of the large room by
every person present, and would have been heard, if the room
and the assembly had been four times as large. With most
speakers there is what I will venture to call a partial separation
or want of perfect coalescence, between the sound of the voice
and the articulated word. With him, all the sound was ab-
sorbed and embodied in the word; and you got the word as it
were without the sound.
**Much has been said of his long, bony forefinger that was
so potent a weapon of his oratory. The finger was not ab-
normally long; only its extreme tenuity made it appear so.
He did use it much, and most tellingly; I never saw him use
any other gesture. When he would raise his hand, all the
fingers closed except that historic forefinger, and he would
shoot an arrowy word of sarcasm or irony from its point with
the full impulse of his elastic voice. If the victim did not
writhe when the bolt struck him, it was because he wore an
armor of triple brass, either of stolid insensibility or else of
conscious integrity. No one, who knew anything personally of
Mr. Randolph, but felt he would have understood little or
nothing, if he had not known the physical man."
Randolph on the Hustings 193
The personal attacks made by Randolph on this occa-
sion on Judge Bouldin and Dr. Cnimp we have already
narrated as Dr. IQrkpatrick narrates them. After re-
calling them, his reminiscences continue as follows :
"What, may be asked, was Mr. Randolph speaking about,
the rest of the time? If the question were, what was he not
speaking about, I might be bold enough to essay an answer
that should, in the main, be responsive thereto; but not to the
question, as it stands, unless you will allow me to put the
answer in the hackneyed : De omnibus rebus et quibusdam aliis.
For the most part, his remarks followed one another on no
other principle governing them than that of involuntary
suggestion. They seemed to run riot, without any act of the
will to control the selection, the order, or the limits. Let me
give you an example: Once, and once only, he entered into a
formal argument in support of a proposition he enunciated.
It was to show the unconstitutionality of the United States
Bank. He laid down some premises with precision, and began,
but had just begun to reason from them, when he found, or
made, occasion to employ an illustration. This was one I
have often heard since, but, being then new to me, I remember
it; the story of Sir Isaac Newton and the two openings, one big
and the other little, side by side, which he ordered to be made
in the bottom of the door of his room, for the ingress and egress
of a favorite cat and her kitten. He declared, with apparent
self-satisfaction, that Sir Isaac, profound philosopher as he was
reputed to be, did not know that a hole large enough for the
passing in and out of the cat would be large enough, and not too
large, for a similar use by the kitten. He dropped his argiunent
against the bank, mounted the illustration from Sir Isaac, ran
a tilt against philosophers, one and all, against the institutions
of learning in which, and the systems of instruction under
which, they were reared; dealing his blows right and left; one
of them striking Hampden-Sidney College hard by, its learned
professors and unlearned students; thus rampaging in the
boundless profusion of figures belonging to invective rhetoric,
until some fresh object, crossing the field of his imagina-
tion, tempted him to a new encotmter, whether in unhorsing
VOL. n — 13
194 John Randolph of Roanoke
knights, routing armies, storming castles, or boxing with
windmills.
**So he went on from hour to hour, a 'free lance,* challenging
all comers. Public measures were alluded to, but never dis-
cussed ; public men were named, sometimes denounced in terms
of bitterness, sometimes gibbeted with ridicule, but never any
of them commended out and out, except Andrew Jackson and
Nat Macon, of North Carolina. Alas! on the other occasion
when I heard him, one year later, Andrew Jackson was struck
from the short roll, and Nat Macon stood there alone. . . .
**I must tell you more particularly how he disposed of Chief
Justice Marshall, the manner of it is so characteristic of the
orator and so illustrates the feature of his oratory last men-
tioned; its fitful zigzagging hither and thither, verging on
incoherency. He had, with a continuity in the tenor of his
remarks, quite unusual with him that day, exposed and
deplored what he was pleased to style the decay of his beloved
Virginia. He spoke with great plainness of the extravagance
of the people, those of his own District included, in their
house furnishings, their table supplies, their dress, equipages,
and everything on which money could be expended; how they
were rearing their sons in idleness, and their daughters in
fashionable frivolities; and how, as the consequence, they were
sinking more deeply and hopelessly in debt, and were
deteriorating in moral worth. His tone was dolorous and
extremely despondent. It was as though he wielded the pater-
nal rod, and had many doubts of its remedial efficacy. At the
close of the jeremiad, he remarked that it gave him no pleasure,
but much pain, to speak thus, nor was it his purpose to give
them pain, but to benefit them by pointing out to them their
faults and their dangers. *Just as a surgeon,* he proceeded,
'performs an operation, not to inflict suffering, but to relieve
a malady. Dr. Jackson, of Philadelphia, has lately performed
a critical operation on the honored Chief Justice of the coimtry .
You all know it was no part of his wish to inflict a single pang,
but that his sole design was to alleviate suffering, and preserve
the valuable life of his subject. And I am glad that Dr. Jack-
son succeeded in the operation, — that he has restored the
Chief Justice to his health, to his friends, to his coimtry, and to
Randolph on the Hustings 195
his seat on the bench of the Supreme Court of the United States
where God knows he ought never to have been put. He is a
great man and a good man; no greater or better man has ever
lived in our country, and yet, if he should be Chief Justice
thirty years longer, he will construe all our liberties away
from us.' He did not permit Hampden-Sidney College to
escape with the one pass at it which has been alluded to. He
returned to the charge, although this time the aim was less
at the College than at the Theological Seminary, which stands
not a quarter of a mile distant from it. Speaking of himself,
as he frequently did through the day, just then of the self-
denials he had been compelled to exercise since he had at*
tained his legal majority, he stated that, when he came into
the possession of his patrimony, he found it involved in debt
to the extent of nineteen shilUngs in the pound. To save the
property, which had descended to him as a sacred trust from
his ancestors, he had worked hard and lived poor. At last,
he had succeeded in the great aim of his life. 'During the
sitting of the late Virginia Convention,' he went on to say,
*I paid the last farthing of the debt, and got a receipt discharg-
ing me from the last obligation imposed by it — a paper which
I would not exchange for a diploma from any of your boasted
colleges, not even for one from your great Hampden-Sidney
over there; no, not if that were backed up by one from your
Union Theological Seminary, where you have a set of young
men lying in the shade enjoying themselves, whilst their
agents are traversing the country begging money to support
them in their idleness!' And, attuning his voice to its keenest
pitch of sarcastic virulence, he thrilled out: *And these claim
to be, par excellence, the followers of our Saviour, who never
wanted money but once in his life, and then He got it out of a
fish's mouth. * "
The next time that Dr. Kirkpatrick heard Randolph
was at Charlotte Court House more than a year after he
had heard him at Prince Edward Court House. It was
on the occasion when Randolph brought forward his
resolutions, condemning the Nullification Proclamation
of Andrew Jackson ; and this was what Dr. Kirkpatrick
196 John Randolph of Roanoke
has to say in regard to the speech delivered by Randolph
then:
" He was in dead earnest now; and, having an object and an
antagonist, his speech, although largely discursive and episodi-
cal, as were all his speeches, had far more connection between
its topics and unity of purpose than the former one. He began
speaking about 1 1 o'clock, and did not leave the room imtil
after nightfall. A part of the time, say one hour in all, was
taken up with the formalities of appointing a committee to
draught resolutions, and of voting on the paper which was
presented; Mr. Randolph, I may interpolate, framed the
resolutions with his own hand, and did the major part of the
voting. The rest of the time he was speaking, or, at least,
talking, sitting, as on the former occasion, because too feeble
to stand, with his supporters, his body supporters, I mean, at
his side; the principal one of them being his half-brother, Ex-
Governor Beverley Tucker, then of Missouri, and with the in-
dispensable bottles of medicine, (there were only three of them
this time) on a table within his reach. He was even more
attenuated in flesh and helpless as to motion than when I first
saw him; but his quivering eye had lost nothing of its nimble-
ness and fire, and his voice none of its marvelous properties —
in him alone not incompatible with each other — of resonant
shrillness and bewitching melody. Again, I must decline any
attempted analysis or compendium of his speech. It was
controUingly personal, personal in both aspects of the term,
as relating to himself, and as relating to other individuals.
That was always a characteristic of his public addresses. He
made every apology he could well do for the implied treachery
of 'Andrew Jackson, Esq.' (he never called him Squire Jackson)
to his former principles, and to the party to which he owed
his elevation to the presidency. The explanation tendered
was that Jackson had permitted a set of men, holding subordi-
nate positions in and around the White House, to acquire an
tmdue and corrupting influence over his judgment, and
prejudices, by flattery, subserviency, and other arts of the
sycophant. To this set he applied the adhesive, blistering
nickname, 'Kitchen Cabinet,' afterward extensively adopted,
Randolph on the Hustings i97
but that day, as I suppose, first heard. He averred very
confidently that Jackson did not write the Proclamation;
and here his exact words without mutilation, retrenchment, or
softening down, must be used ; else the whole effect will be lost.
They are engraved on my memory; I have only to copy the
inscription: 'Jackson did not write that Proclamation. Not
that he does not possess the requisite intellectual ability, but
that he has not the literary culture. I know who did write it,
and I will prove to you I am right. If you please, I will put
the proof in the form of a syllogism, thus! The man who
wrote that Proclamation wields a pen such as no man in the
United States but himself can wield; Edward Livingston of
Louisiana, the present Secretary of State, wields a pen such as
no man in the United States but himself can wield; therefore,
Edward Livingston wrote the Proclamation. Fellow-citizens,
he is a man of splendid abilities, but utterly corrupt. He
shines and stinks like rotten mackerel by moonlight. ' " (a)
And this is the description given us by Wm. M. Moseley,
of Danville, Virginia, of a later speech delivered by Ran-
dolph :
"The last public speech of Mr. Randolph was delivered at
Buckingham Court-house in the year 1833, he then being on his
way to Philadelphia, where he died shortly after. He was
travelling by private conveyance, accompanied by his two
favorite servants, Juba and John. His expected arrival had
been previously announced, and, it being the regular monthly
term of the county court, as might have been expected, the
attendance was unusually large, most of the old citizens of the
county being prompted by a desire to see their former represen-
tative in Congress once more, and to hear him speak, perhaps
for the last time. Those who had never seen him, but who
had heard of his reputation as a speaker, determined to avail
themselves of this opportunity of seeing and hearing one of
whom so much had been said.
'*He reached the village at about eleven o'clock a.m., by
which time a large concourse of people had assembled upon the
court yard, and along the principal street, all anxiously looking
198 John Randolph of Roanoke
for the arrival of this distinguished personage: ... He was
immediately conducted to the court-house and occupied the
judge's seat, from which, in a sitting posture, after the large
court-room had become filled to its utmost capacity, he pro-
ceeded to deliver a speech, in the making of which he seemed to
have had no special object other than that of giving his opinion
as to matters and things in general. Public men and public
measures of the past as well as of the present seemed to be
passing in review before him, and for each of whom he seemed
to have some unkind remembrance. His whole speech, if such
it might be called, evinced an unhappy state of mind, if not a
disordered intellect. No class and no profession escaped his
bitter invective and withering sarcasm. Nothing either in
Chtu-ch or State seemed to be progressing according to his
liking.
** At the close of his disconnected harangue, but few even of
his old constituents ventured to approach him with anything
like familiarity; not knowing how such advances might be
received.***
' Bouldin, i6o, i6i.
CHAPTER VII
General Observations on Randolph as an Orator
Before passing from this branch of our subject, the
reader may pardon us for making a few observations of
our own on Randolph as an orator, suggested by close
familiarity with his printed words. First, let us say that
the reports of his Congressional speeches must, in many
instances, be far from accurate. Their fidelity, we know,
was frequently impeached by him. But what we are
mainly concerned about is their failure to justify the idea
which has come down to us that his chief weapons in
debate were the tomahawk and the scalping-knife. These
reports, as we have seen, reveal some witty thrusts, some
withering sarcasms, and some bitter personalities. We
say witty thrusts only because Randolph was rarely, if
ever, humorous ; but we cannot see that he habitually so
far transcended the ordinary moderation of debate as to
be justly placed, as he has so often been, in the same
savage class as Powhatan or Opechancanough. Either
much of the acerbity of his Congressional speeches has
been sweetened by judicious revision, or the terrifying
effect, so often attributed to his eloquence, must have
been very much intensified by the rapt attention which he
usually commanded, his dramatic manner, and the pecu-
liar physical apparatus by which his rhetorical effects
were produced ; that is to say : the tall skeleton figtu-e, so
suggestive of Death and his dart ; the strange voice, usually
as musical as a flute but as shrill at times, when rasped by
199
200 John Randolph of Roanoke
uncommon excitement, as that of a pigeon-hawk starting
off full-tilt after his panic-stricken quarry, and the lean,
javelin-like fore-finger, which Von Hoist says was the ter-
ror of all the little and sinful spirits in the House of Repre-
sentatives. ' Extraordinary powers of sarcasm and invec-
tive he unquestionably had, irrespective of these personal
characteristics, and they were sometimes, as in the Vir-
ginia Convention of 1829-30, unwarrantably abused, to be
sure. But it is only fair to him to say that they were
generally wreaked upon depravity, cant, conceit or, incom-
petence.
Sawyer, as we have seen, speaks of Randolph's remark-
able powers of retribution as if they never pushed his usual
courtesy in debate aside tmless called into play by some
real provocation. This idea, however, must be adopted
with very decided qualifications; as witness his general
attitude towards Henry Clay down to the time of his duel
with him, and afterwards, and his superciUous treatment
of Chapman Johnson in the Virginia Convention, (a)
But the idea is sufficiently supported by the facts to sug-
gest some modification of the traditional view of Randolph
as a mere malignant Sagittarius,
His Blifil and Black George attack upon Clay was
matched by utterances of his equally severe. When
Richard Rush was appointed to the office of Secretary of
the Treasury, he said: ** Never were abilities so much
below mediocrity so well rewarded; no, not when Caligu-
la's horse was made Consul."* It is not surprising that
Rush should have been stung by this remark into publish-
ing the essay on Randolph, signed ** Julius," which for
black, undiluted bile hardly has its fellow. Dulcified a
little by an occasional compliment, it would have been a
trtdy telling satire.
Of an ambitious man, with little native ability, Ran-
dolph said that his mind was like the lands at the head-
« ConstUutianal History of U, 5., 1750-1832, p. 334. » Bouldin, 317.
Randolph as an Orator 201
waters of the Monongahela ; naturally poor and made still
poorer by excessive cultivation. ^
In the book by Adlai E. Stevenson, entitled, Something
of Men I Have Known, we find this story about Randolph :
"A colleague from The Valley* probably remembered him
well to the last. That colleague, recently elected to fill a
vacancy, caused by the death of a member of long service,
signalized his entrance into the House by an unprovoked
attack upon Mr. Randolph. The latter, from his seat nearby,
listened with apparent unconcern to the fierce personal assault.
To the surprise of all, no immediate reply was made to the
speech, and the new member flattered himself, no doubt, that
the 'grim sage' was for once completely unhorsed. A few days
later, however, Randolph, while discussing a bill of local
importance, casually remarked : 'This bill, Mr. Speaker, lost
its ablest advocate in the death of my lamented colleague,
whose seat is still vacant.'*^
A similar story is told by W. H. Sparks :
**I remember, upon one occasion, pending the debate upon
the Missouri question, and when Mr. Randolph was in the
habit of almost daily addressing the House, that a Mr. Beecher,
of Ohio, who was very impatient with Randolph's tirades,
would, in the lengthy pauses made by him, rise from his place
and move the previous question. The Speaker would reply :
*The member from Virginia has the floor.' The first and
second interruption was not noticed by Randolph, but, upon
the repetition a third time, he slowly lifted his head from
contemplating his notes, and said: *Mr. Speaker, in the
Netherlands, a man of small capacity, with bits of wood and
leather, will, in a few moments, construct a toy that, with the
pressure of the finger and thumb, will cry, * * Cuckoo ! Cuckoo !"
With less of ingenuity, and with inferior materials, the people
of Ohio have made a toy that will, without much pressure, cry,
"Previous Question, Mr. Speaker! Previous question, Mr.
Speaker! " — at the same time designating Beecher by pointing
« Nathan Loughborough MSS. » P. 391.
202 John Randolph of Roanoke
at him with his long skeleton-like finger. In a moment, the
Hotise was convulsed with laughter, and I doubt if Beecher
ever survived the sarcasm.**'
Of Philip P. Barbour, who was a close reasoner, and his
brother James Barbour, who is supposed to have been too
much of a declaimer, Randolph once said that Phil, could
split a hair but that Jim could not hit a bam door. * But
this was not so pointed as the couplet which some wag
wrote upon the walls of the House :
"Two Barbours to shave our Congress long did try,
One shaves with froth; the other shaves dry."^
Governor James H. Pleasants, Randolph asserted on
one occasion, was like some of his (Randolph's) blooded
horses : '* too weak for the plow, and too slow for the turf. " ^
(o)
After the political tergiversation of Samuel Dexter, of
Massachusetts, Randolph termed him, **Mr. Ambi-Dex-
ter."s
Never did a man have a cleverer gift of minting phrases
that passed into genera circulation.
Benjamin Hardin, of Kentucky, a vigorous but unpol-
ished speaker, was **a carving knife whetted on a brick-
bat."«
The wavering Edmund Randolph was **the chameleon
on the aspen, always trembling, always changing."'
Of Robert Wright and John Rea (Ray) he said that the
House exhibited two anomalies : * * A Wright always wrong ;
and a Ray without light. "*
« The Memories of so Yrs., by Wm. H. Sparks, 237.
» Nathan Loughborough MSS.
i The Memories of so Yrs., by W. H. Sparks, 233.
* Bryan MSS. « Life of Quincy, 352.
< Wm. Fitzhugh Gordon, by Armistead C. Gordon, 278, Lotighboiough
MSS.
fLife of Thos. Jefferson, by Tucker, v. i, 501 (note).
• Bryan MSS.
Randolph as an Orator 203
The politic and secretive Van Buren, Randolph said,
"rowed to his object with muffled oars."' (a)
Of a cautious statesman, he said that, under his direc-
tion, the Ship of State might never take a prize, but it
would probably never become one. ^
Benton's four-day speech, he observed, consumed one
day more than the French Revolution (of 1830).^
Yes, Thomas Ritchie (the distinguished editor of the
Richmond Enquirer) did have seven principles, but they
were the 5 loaves and the two fishes. ^
"Clay's eye is on the Presidency; and my eye is on
him."«
Turning away from a lady who had been pouring her
sympathy with the struggling Greeks into his ear, Ran-
dolph pointed to a group of ragged little negroes near the
steps of her home and exclaimed: "Madam, the Greeks
are at your door ! " ^ — words that soon winged their way to
every part of the United States.
Referring to the naval strength of England, and to
Madison's pamphlet on neutral rights, he said: "Against
800 ships in commission we enter the lists with a three-
shilling pamphlet. "7
Other epigrams of his were these: "The bad blood will
show in some part of the four-mile heat. "*
"An English noble has but one son, all the rest are
bastards. "»
"England is Elysium for the rich; Tartarus for the
poor."'*
"I am an aristocrat; I love liberty, I hate equality.""
"Asking one of the States to surrender part of her sov-
« Nathan Loughborough MSS. » Ibid, » Ibid.
< Reminiscences of J. R., by Robt. L. Dabney, Union Seminary Mag., v.
6 (1894-5), 14-21. Nathan Loughborough MSS.
« Nathan Loughborough MSS. * Bouldin, 113.
7 Memoirs of Wm. Wirt, by J. P. Kennedy, v. i, 328.
• Nathan Loughborough MSS. • /J. « • Id.
"Id.
204 John Randolph of Roanoke
ereignty is like asking a lady to surrender part of her
chastity."'
'*New Orleans is the key to our strong-box."'
"The three degrees of comparison — begging, borrowing,
and stealing."^
"A rat hole will let in the ocean. "^
** It is a turnstyle; it is in everybody's way but it stops
no one."^
"Poverty, that nurse of genius, though she sometimes
overlays it."*
"Dogmatism is puppyism matured";^ — ^but is not this
older than Randolph?
"Stick to a friend a little in the wrong. "*
"That most delicious of privileges — spending other
people's money. " '
His violent prepossessions in favor of the Virginian viva
voce mode of voting hurried him into the assertion that the
ballot box was Pandora's box. ^®
"Denouncing me! That is strange. I never did him
a favor. ""
"No man was ever satisfied to be half a king.""
The Northern Democrats with Southern principles were
"doughfaces"; another phrase which was soon on the tip
of every tongue in the country. '^
Clever, too, was his saying: "There must be something
for the shilling gallery as well as the Pit. " '^
Tumbull's painting of the signing of the Declaration of
Independence, in which the human leg has such inordinate
« Nathan Loughborough MSS. 'A, of C, 1805-7, 353.
- » Nathan Loughborough MSS. * Debates of Va, Conv.^ 1829-30, 319.
« Nathan Loughborough MSS. * J. R.'s Diary.
» Nathan Loughborough MSS. • Id. fid, « • Id.
" Something of Men I have Known, by Adlai E. Stevenson, 391.
" Letter to Monroe, Sept. 16, 1806, Monroe Papers, Libr. Cong., v. 11.
»3 McMaster's Hist, of U. 5., v. 4, 591.
«< Letter to J. H. Nicholson, Bizarre, Dec. 4, 1809, Nicholson MSS., Libr.
Consr.
Randolph as an Orator 205
prominence, became known far and wide by the name that
he gave it: "shin-piece.**'
A portion of the architecture of the Senate Chamber he
ridiculed as ** com stalk columns and corn-cob capitals. " *
But, after all, Randolph's best epigram was this golden
sentence : "Life is not so important as the duties of life. "^
A good pendant to it is that other pithy observation of
his : * ' We all know our duty better than we discharge it . "
Nor should we overlook two other weighty utterances of
his, notable for their sententious conciseness, if for nothing
else : ' * Time is at once the most valuable and the most
perishable of all our possessions." "All of us have two
educations; one which we receive from others; another,
and the most valuable, which we give ourselves. "
The stamp on his phrases was regarded with so much
popular favor that his mintage, it must be confessed, was
sometimes given a fictitious value. Rather overstrained
rhodomontade has always seemed to us to be his famous
vatmt that the Minute Men of Culpeper County, Virginia,
who acquitted themselves so gallantly during the Ameri-
can Revolution "were raised in a minute, armed in a min-
ute, marched in a minute, fought in a minute, and van-
quished in a minute. " It is hard to transform either the
organization, the march or the victory of a miUtary force
into the "Cynthia of a minute."^
At times, Randolph's wit could even overcome the
surliness of a foreign tongue. Not so good as Dean
Swift's inimitable, "0 Mantua nimium vicina Cremonae!'^
when he saw a violin swept from a table by a lady's dress,
and yet not bad, was Randolph's rejoinder to Samuel W.
Dana in the House : * * Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes, "
Some Congressional orators have excelled Randolph in
' Register of Debates ^ 1827-28, v. 4, part i, 942.
* Life of Rujus King^ ed., by Chas. R. King, v. 6, 168, (note).
* Nathan Loughborough MSS.
^Hist, Cols, of Va.f by Howe, 237.
2o6 John Randolph of Roanoke
depth of research, in sweep of vision and sympathy, in
thoroughness of exposition, and in capacity for closely
knit and long-sustained trains of reasoning; but which one
of them has ever outshone him in those bright fields over
which the htunan spirit sparkles or flames in its kindling
moments? Ingenuity, Wit, Fancy, Imagination, Elo-
quence, Intuitive Sagacity, and occasionally, a rare gift
of Vaticination light up the drab and commonplace
Congressional background of his speeches as the rays of
the sun reflected from some glassy or metallic surface are
sometimes seen to light up a sullen hillside. To read the
speeches of Randolph's earlier fellow Congressmen, which
for the most part are now as lifeless as burnt-out fuses,
and then to turn to one of his speeches is like what it for-
merly was to sit in a theatre at night and to have all the
gas jets in it, from dome to pit, suddenly lifted up the
fraction of an inch higher. Whatever else Randolph may
be, he is to his present reader, as he was to his contempo-
rary auditor, always interesting. The moment he appears
before the curtain the orchestra strikes up and the move-
ment from beginning to end is allegro. He uttered
many immoderate and even some bigoted words, and
occasionally he uttered a shallow one, though nothing can
be truer than the claim so frequently made that robust
common sense was the real basis of his intellectual charac-
ter. The Reverend Dr. Conrad Speece, of Virginia, used
to say that he would rather hear the nonsense of John
Randolph than the sense of any other man; and even
Randolph's wit, to use a fine general definition of wit by
Alphonse Karr, was often only "reason armed." But,
when he rose to speak in the House, his hearers had no
inclination except to sit mute and to give themselves up to
a rhetorical spell which made them feel as if they were
listening to some unique being, whose classic eloquence,
freed from all pedantry by the breath of the dewy fields
and forests of the plantation and the fuller knowledge of
Randolph as an Orator 207
men and man's estate which comes from daily contact
with htmian beings and human affairs, had been formed
not in the ordinary school of Congressional declamation,
but in some school where the open face of Nature, the
agora and the Academy had each been a preceptress.
Randolph's speeches in Congress were frequently gar-
nished with apt quotations from Latin and English poetry
and allusions to such Homeric heroes as Nestor, Achilles,
and Hector ; indeed with references to almost every prov-
ince of human learning, for his memory retained impres-
sions as faithfully as a baked tile. His diction, unstudied
as it was, though sometimes in his later years enctunbered
with too many parentheses, was eminently scholarly, and
at times even lofty, and was always not only pure, nervous,
and correct, but finished almost ad ungtiem. No speech,
however impressive at the time, ever lives unless it is good
literature; and the charm of reading whatever Randolph
spoke or wrote is essentially a literary charm. But, so far
as we are aware, there is not the slightest evidence to show
that any member of Congress ever sincerely objected to
his speeches because they were accompanied by Latin or
English quotations, or on the ground that they were
scholastic in any respect. The attitude of Congress
towards them appears to have been that of the character
in **The Elder Brother*' of Beaumont and Fletcher, who
said:
** Though I can speak no Greek, I love the sound on't,
It goes so thundering as it conjured devils.*'
It enjoyed them and drank them in with keen eagerness,
perhaps because it approved Randolph's own saying that
it is a good plan to hitch up a colt with a dull horse. If
they had been the speeches of a pedant or a mere scholar,
this, of course, would not have been the case. Deliberative
assemblies, even those composed to a great extent of highly
edticated men, soon tire of that kind of a speaker. But
2o8 John Randolph of Roanoke
Latin and English quotations, and the display of many
kinds of knowledge, of which the average Congressman
was ignorant, and really had no great need, did not give
a member of the House a distaste for Randolph's oratory
because these things he felt instinctively were but a part
of that almost preternatural facility with which Randolph
could for hours at a time, with as much ease as water runs
out of a cup, or the wind moves along its trackless path-
way, give utterance to a host of fresh pictorial thoughts,
expressed with too much consimimate readiness and har-
mony to leave the slightest doubt behind them as to the
ability of the speaker to carry, without difficulty, the
whole weight of his burden, however various. Randolph's
learning, like all the other elements which entered into his
liquid speech, was held in infusion too completely to have
a foreign flavor, (a) The truth is that his literary accom-
plishments were, as they should have been, a merely sub-
sidiary feature of his character as an orator and a states-
man; and in this position they were kept, aside from still
more important features of that character, by his extra-
ordinary prominence as a wealthy land- and slave-holder,
his high social station, his familiarity with the world of
action, as well as of books, and the extent to which his
mind was saturated with reflections and illustrations
drawn from the great living volume of nature in Virginia.
To few men in the public life of England or of our own
country have instructive apothegms or wise maxims, prov-
erbs, and sayings derived from the collective wisdom of
hiunanity, expressing itself on the street and in the farm-
house, been more serviceable in the propagation of their
ideas than they were to Randolph. They were but suc-
cinct formulae, for rules of conduct worked out by his
own practical intelligence, which rarely lost contact with
actuality.
One of the most attractive traits of his oratory was the
promptitude with which he seized upon some rural fact or
Randolph as an Orator 209
natural phenomenon for the purpose of giving point to
some conception or argument of his. An example of this
on the hustings is mentioned by the Rev. Wm. S. Lacy in
his Early Recollections of John Randolph.
**He was at the time alluded to speaking with calmness and
earnestness too, deeply absorbed in his subject and, from the
quiet and fixed attention of the people, they were deeply inter-
ested also. He was in the act of stating that, if certain things
were done, *such an event would follow as inevitably* — ^and
casting up his eye, as if to seize upon some appropriate illus-
tration, a leaf from the tree over him came twirling down be-
fore his face, and, following it with his finger in its fall to the
grotmd, he added — *as the power of gravitation.* If he had
studied a month for an illustration, to suit his purpose precisely,
he could not have selected one more appropriate. It seemed
to strike everyone with an agreeable surprise. This, however,
is only one out of scores of similar instances.**' (a)
Another story of the same sort is found in a letter from
Timothy Pickering to Rufus King: **John Randolph,"
he says, ** observing my townsman, Crowninshield, quite
fierce for Gregg's Resolution, said to one of my friends in
the House that 'he (Crowninshield) was like a hog swim-
ming over a river — who would cut his own throat. ' ** *
On another occasion, discussing the regular army, he
said: ** If ever we are to have a respectable regular force,
we must, to use a phrase common in our new settled
country, * begin again from the stump. ***^ In the econ-
omy of such a country as Southside Virginia stumps were
a standing offense to proper tilth, and, left in the beds of
new-made roads, sometimes spiced travel with no little
risk; so it is natural that Randolph should have returned
to them a second time in debate. The road from the
Crimea to Byzantium had proved a **stiunpy" one for
» Union Seminary Mag., v. 5 (1893-94), P- i-io.
• Feb. 13, 1806, Life of Rufus King, ed., by Chas. R. King, v. 4, 494.
iA. of C, 1809-10, V. I, 62.
VOL. II — 14
210 John Randolph of Roanoke
Russia, he said. ' On another occasion, illustrating the
sense of impimity , he exclaimed :
** If you want mischievous stock on your farm or plantation,
you must keep bad fences; if you would have roguish hogs,
cows and horses, keep bad fences. Those, who would not
otherwise have ventured to jtmip over a straw, will in that
way soon learn to jtmip, as we say in the Southern Country,
over ten rails and a rider."*
The embargo without a time limitation was a "horse
medicine."^ Who that ever witnessed the hit-or-miss,
kill-or-cure, methods of a rural veterinarian can be at
any loss to understand just what Randolph meant? The
amazing thing is that speeches so faultless in syntax and
expression, and so crowded with glistening similes and
metaphors and pointed, and, at times, poetical, phrases,
should have been thrown off by him wholly without verbal
preparation. In the course of a debate in the House, he
spoke of himself as accustomed to meditate much on his
opinions, and not at all on the language that conveyed
them;^ and, in another debate, he declared that he had
never been able to make what was called '*a regular
speech. " (a) Everything appeared to undergo a kind of
"sea-change" in his mind; passing into it in some prosaic,
familiar form, and issuing from it in some vivid and highly
original one. "That simple rule,** he once declared, in
regard to a parliamentary rule relating to the motion to
reconsider, "might satisfy the most lynx-eyed duenna
anxious to restrain the wanton excursions of debate."^
Or take this example : "But how cruel it is when the cup
of fruition is, as it were, at the lips of the panting expectant
for this House, for the Conmiittee of Claims — ^that Rhada-
«i4.o/C., 1823-24, V. 1, 1 183.
i A, of C, 1809-10, V. I, 105.
«i4. of C, 1815-16, V. I, 698.
*A. of C, 1815-16, V. I, 945.
* A, of C, 1821-22, V. I, 943.
Randolph as an Orator
211
manthan Committee — ^to dash it from the parched lips of
these thirsty patriots ! " *
Or take this example :
"It was as much as old Nestor, with trusty Sthenelus by his
side, and all the train could do to arrest those fiery hot-
headed steeds who were hurrying the state carriage down the
precipice of French alliance."*
And when was any other Congressman ever known to
frame such a sentence as this :
"Miserable indeed would be the condition of oppressed
humanity, if the sweet pliability of man's spirit could not now
and then turn its gaze from the sombre events of life and relax
into a smile."^
The simplest, the most uninspiring, subject had a way
of picturing itself in boldly figurative language when
heated by his imagination: "The moment this bill be-
comes a law,'* he announced on one occasion, "you will
hear the flap of the ominous wings of the Treasury poun-
cing upon your table with projects of land tax, excise,
hearth tax, window tax. ** ^
However diffuse and vagrant his discoiu-se might be as
a whole, his individual sentences were usually concise
and sententious to an eminent degree, as when he said:
"You may cover whole skins of parchment with limita-
tions but power alone can limit power. "^
"The vermin of contract,'' "the besom of innovation,"
"Backstairs influence," "the pages of the water-closet,"
are but some of the derisive expressions which clung Uke
burrs to the memory of his contemporaries. Diplomats
he defined as "privileged spies."
^ A,oJ C, 1816-17, V. 2, 388.
iA, of C, 1807-08, V. 2, 2048.
»i4. of C.f 181 1 — 12, V. I, 744.
M. of C, 1809-1810, V. I, 150.
*A. of C, 1811-12, V. I, 775.
212 John Randolph of Roanoke
When was the truth, of which we have aknost lost sight
in this day of the initiative and referendum, more point-
edly stated than by Randolph ?
** Every feature of our Governments, both State and Federal,
prove that the people were sensible of the necessity of restrain-
ing as well the headlong impetuosity of the multitude as the
inordinate ambition of the few. Where such restraint is not
imposed there is no genuine liberty."*
And when was the difference between the scope of real
executive oversight on a large scale and that of narrow
routine training brought out more distinctly than it was in
these words directed against Crowninshield : (a)
"There were two sorts of experience — ^that of an enlarged,
liberal, reflecting mind, possessing powers of high discrimina-
tion, capable of comparing effects in all their various relations
to each other, and a little petty, personal experience, extending
to a few matters of insignificant detail. Because a man had
served on board a merchant vessel, whether in the forecastle or
the cabin, did that entitle him to talk magisterially on systems
of naval defense? Or because he could box the compass was
he better calculated for the head of an admiralty than John
Lord Spencer, who was probably destitute of that elegant
accomplishment, but who, because he was a statesman and
not because he was an able-bodied seaman, had conducted the
naval affairs of a country with a success and glory that might
be equalled but never could be surpassed.***
Nor could political philosophy ever hope to be attired
in a more winning dress than it is in these words used by
Randolph in the Virginia Convention of 1 829-30 on the
proposition to discard property as a principle to be taken
into account in fixing upon the proper basis for the suf-
frage :
*A. of C, 1807-08, V. I, 941. *A. of C, 1807-08, V. I, 1 169.
Randolph as an Orator 213
** It is the first time in my life that I ever heard of a govern-
ment which was to divorce property from power, yet this is
seriously and soberly proposed to us. Sir, I know it is practi-
cable, but it can be done only by a violent divulsion as in
France — but the moment you have separated the two thax
very moment property will go in search of power and power
in search of property. 'Male and female created he them,'
and the two sexes do not more certainly, nor by a more unerr-
ing law, gravitate to each other than power and property.**^ (a)
The truth of what we have so far said about Randolph
as an orator is generally allowed ; but it is often asserted
that his speeches were at times unduly prolix and digres-
sive and therefore deficient in the best quality of a good
speech; that is, relevancy to the point at issue; and not
infrequently these criticisms, as we have seen, assume the
form of a flat asseveration that Randolph's mind was
lacking in logical power.
In weighing the force of these views, a broad distinction
must be taken between Randolph in the earlier stages of
his political career and Randolph in its later. At no time
in his life were his speeches cast in the ordinary mould of
formal, standard logic ; for, at no time in his life, it is be-
lieved, did he rely upon anything but the vivida vis of his
own quick, fertile mind for the garb of his spoken words.
Even in his earlier speeches, there is often a lack in the
chain of his thoughts of that closely linked concatenation
which is found even in the efforts of commonplace but
more conventional speakers. In his finest speeches, such
as those on Gregg's Resolution, there are lacunce, missing
stitches, here and there, and then passion, as in his Yazoo
speeches, is often so perfectly fused with argument that
argument appears to lose, to no little extent, its own
severe, sharply defined character. (6) But to assert that,
even when Randolph's mind was not in a shattered con-
dition, his speeches gave no evidence of real logical power,
« Debates, 319.
214 John Randolph of Roanoke
is to disregard altogether the reports of his speeches in the
records of Congress. These reports will show that, at
times, he not only reasoned consecutively and most co-
gently but, at times, most ingeniously and subtly. It was
an observation of Calhoun, one of the acutest of men, that
it was an error to suppose that Randolph was deficient
in reasoning capacity. Upon a single point, he said,
Randolph reasoned admirably ; it was only when he came
to deal with a combination of points that his ratiocination
fell short ' ; and there is some truth in this judgment ; for
Randolph was endowed with what has been happily called
"a single-track mind." John Wickham also had some-
thing to say on the subject :
**If the enemies of Mr. Randolph mean to say that he can
not, or at least does not, build up an argument, brick by brick,
as an architect puts up a house, they are probably correct. But
as the object of all argument is to carry a point, and, as he
must be considered the ablest reasoner who makes the most
decided impression, he must be a very rash man who should
refuse to accord to Mr. Randolph reasoning powers of a very
high order.'**
Be this as it may, there was never a time in Randolph's
Ufe, whether before his intellect became gravely suscep-
tible to derangement, or afterwards, when he did not pos-
sess, to a remarkable degree, the faculty of reasoning
soundly by flashes of intuition; of reaching the correct
conclusion by a leap instead of by a step-ladder. Few
men, too, have equalled him in the faculty of condensing
laborious processes of argtunentation into a pithy state-
ment or a felicitous figure of speech. On this subject,
there are some weighty sentences in The Party Leaders of
Joseph G. Baldwin, who lived near enough to Randolph's
' "Sketches of the Va. Convention of 1829-30," by Hugh R. Pleasants,
So, Lit, Mess.f v. 17, 302.
* Nathan Loughborough MSS.
Randolph as an Orator 215
time to make him little less than an original authority on
the subject of Randolph :
** But most largely developed of all his faculties, probably,
was his quick, clear and deep comprehension. His finely-
toned and penetrative intellect possessed an acumen, a per-
spicuity which was as quick and vivid as lightning. His
conclusions did not wait upon long and labored inductions;
his mind, as by an instinctive insight, darted at once upon the
core of the subject, and sprang with an electric leap upon the
conclusion. He started where most reasoners end. It is a
mistake to suppose that he was deficient in argumentative
power. He was as fertile of argumentation as most speakers;
he was only deficient in argiunentative forms. His statements
were so clear, so simplified, and so vivid that they saved him
much of the necessity of laborious processes of ratiocination.
Much that looked like declamation was only illustration or
another form of argument. *'*
But, unquestionably, Randolph's latter day speeches,
even before his mental powers became permanently im-
paired, were inferior in point of logical coherency to his
earlier ones. Brilliant and far-sighted as was his leading
speech- on the tariff in 1824, in it can yet be observed
indications of the mental relaxation which, at times,
rendered his subsequent speeches so diffuse and rambling.
Diiring his Senatorial career, his growing tendency towards
feverish loquacity and aimless wanderings, aggravated by
an indubitable access of positive mental infirmity, reached
its extreme limit, so far as Congress was concerned; and,
notwithstanding the gleams of wit, wisdom, and instructive
knowledge, by which even his longest and most multi-
farious discourses in the Senate were relieved, and the
savage force, with which they sank their teeth at times,
into the flank of the Adams administration, his speeches
during his Senatorial career were serious impediments to
the orderly and dispatchf ul transaction of the public busi-
»P. 268.
2i6 John Randolph of Roanoke
ness, and even had a decided effect in defeating his re-
election to the Senate. It will not do, however, to attach
too much importance to the fact that Randolph's speeches
in Congress were not always pertinent to the pending
subject of debate. He often used the text furnished by
it merely as a hook on which to hang his convictions about
current political issues. As a speech on Retrenchment
and Reform, his speech on that subject in the House is a
very irrelevant one, but, as an eulogy of Andrew Jackson,
and an attack on John Quincy Adams, it is a masterpiece.
Singular to say, to anyone, who is not familiar with the
peculiar manner in which the recurrences of Randolph's
dementia manifested themselves, his speeches in the Vir-
ginia Convention of 1829-30 were not only brief but
conspicuously terse and pointed. They too are marked by
little or no studied reasoning ; indeed by little reasoning of
any kind, but it must be borne in mind that his policy in
the Convention was not to open up or discuss any question
new or old, but simply to insist doggedly and scornfully
upon the strength of Sir Robert Walpole's maxim, quieta
non movere, that the existing constitution of Virginia
should undergo no substantial change. After the ad-
journment of the Convention, Randolph never spoke in
any deliberative body again ; and it will not do to test the
merits of his subsequent speeches on the hustings by the
standards prescribed by parliamentary oratory. In the
last stages of his political activity, even when he was in a
mental state to be taken seriously at all, he was not merely
an orator; he was a theatrical show, a circus as well.
Thousands of people thronged to hear him on court day,
not so much to be instructed as to be startled and enter-
tained, and the avidity, with which they devoured every-
thing that he said, reacted unfavorably upon his oratorical
gifts, already deeply affected by his general loss of mental
force and balance. He became arrogant, overbearing,
garrulous, extravagant, abusive, and resolved still to sit.
Randolph as an Orator 217
even if he no longer had the strength to stand, before the
footlights. Finally, we see Randolph at Buckingham
Court House, as Moseley described him — a decrepit, mo-
rose, crack-brained old man, but little removed from the
stage of hiunan existence when we are told by Jacques that
we are " sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything, "
or, as he described himself, ''a poor, half-crazy, moon-
struck South-sider. " ^ But, perhaps, we have engaged in
an unprofitable task in subjecting Randolph as an orator
to ordinary principles of criticism at all. His charm as a
speaker consisted largely in the fact that his elocution and
matter were both so peculiarly original as to render him
absolutely unique. There is no other orator with whom
we can compare him. He is the only member of his
species, and to him might be applied what the New
England countryman said of that other brilliant creature,
Rufus Choate. Contrasting Choate with Webster, he
said: "Webster is like everybody else, except that there is
more of him; but whoever saw anybody like Rufus
Choate?"
« Letter to J. R. Bryan and wife, Aug. i, 1830, Bryan MSS.
CHAPTER VIII
Randolph as a Statesman
Randolph's position as an orator is assured, but his
position as a statesman is by no means so certain. Indeed,
if he is judged by present standards of American states-
manship, it is difficult for anyone except a student of his-
tory to think of him as a statesman at all ; so completely
lost beyond all possibility of redemption are most of the
causes for which he strove. There was nothing conti-
nental; nothing truly national, about him. It will not do
to apply to him as a statesman our current tests — ^an
open-minded construction of the Federal Constitution;
devotion to the ideal of national unity; faith in our ex-
panding population, wealth and power; sensibility to the
military and naval needs, developed by the mutual pro-
pinquity of all parts of the earth, brought about by the
steamship, the steam-car, and the aeroplane; the awaken-
ing sense of international community, which is slowly
leading to the sober fulfillment of Tennyson's radiant
dream of the Parliament of Man and the Federation of
the World, and freedom from all the sectional and class
prepossessions and prejudices which do so much to cramp
and blur the outlook which should belong to the true
statesman. Tried by these tests, Randolph is not entitled
to the place which has been given him in the series of lives,
published by Houghton, Mifflin Co., under the title of
American Statesmen.
When construing the powers of the general government
218
Randolph as a Statesman 219
under the Federal Constitution, he approached that
iiistrument in a spirit as nice and exacting as that of Shy-
lock when construing the words of his bond: " *Tis not
so nominated in the bond," was as far as he could be
induced to go. Members of the House of Representatives,
as we have seen, he deemed representatives of the States
and not of the nation. He denied the power of the Federal
Government to establish a national bank, or national
highways, or to enact an impost measure with any element
of protection in it. He was so jealous of any attempt on
its part to assert authority over the waters of the Potomac
River that even Jefferson was compelled to dismiss his
fine-spun refinements as ' ' metaphysical. ' ' The act organ-
izing a provisional government for the colony of Virginia
in 1652 concluded: "God save the commonwealth of
England and this country of Virginia!''* Transpose the
members of this sentence and it not inaptly voices Ran-
dolph's political allegiance. The State of Virginia, then
England, and then what he called, "the good old thirteen
United States,"^ exclusive of Virginia, was perhaps the
order in which his local attachments ranged themselves,
(a) Except so far as the Southern States, other than
Virginia, were bound to Virginia by similar institutions
and pursuits, he seems to have cared as little about them
as he did about the Middle or Eastern States. In many
respects, his social characteristics and tastes were better
suited to England than to the crudity of our early national
existence. To him it was the maternal and a riper Vir- '
ginia. Indeed, near the close of his life, his disaffection
even with his native commonwealth was so strong that Dr.
Ethelbert Algernon Coleman, after visiting him at Roa-
noke, made this entry in his unpublished diary, on Oct.
20, 1832: "From his continual abuse of this country and
its levelling principles, and from the exalted terms, in
» Hist, of Va., by Chas. Campbell, 223.
*A,ofC., 1815-16,534.
220 John Randolph of Roanoke
which he speaks of England and its society and institu-
tions, one would certainly conclude him to be a tory."
These, however, were but the outgivings of a soul so sick
from both physical and mental causes as to be incapable
any longer of finding tranquillity and contentment any-
where. It is true that even in healthier moments Ran-
dolph often decried Virginia, but, in this respect, he
resembles Dr. Johnson, who disparaged Goldsmith himself
but would not allow anyone else to do so. The intense
sympathy which he usually manifested with the Irish in
their desire for a larger measure of political well-being, the
fond veneration which he entertained for the character of
Washington, the pride which he took in our Revolutionary
achievements, the satisfaction which he derived from the
popular as well as the aristocratic side of the old Virginia
dvil polity, show that, after all, Virginia was more con-
genial with his predilections than England, even though
he did exclaim at times that there never had and never
would be such a country as England, or such a boot-and-
shoemaker as Hoby, of London, or insisted that he was a
member of the Established Church of England. For noth-
ing can be beter avouched than his constant, fervid, and
impassioned affection for Virginia. *'When I speak of
my country," he wrote to Key on Sept. 7, 1818, "I mean
the Commonwealth of Virginia."'
**I confess," he said, when the Apportionment Bill of 1822
brought out the fact that Virginia was slipping back in the
scale of population, "that I have (and I am not at all ashamed
to own it) an hereditary attachment to the State which gave
me birth. I shall act upon it as long as I act on this floor
or anywhere else; I shall feel it when I am no longer capable
of action anywhere, but I beg gentlemen to bear in mind that,
if we feel the throes and agonies, which gentlemen seem to
impute to us at the recollection of our departing power, why.
Sir, there is something in fallen greatness, though it be in the
» Garland, v. 2, 103.
Randolph as a Statesman 221
person of a despot; something, to enlist the passions and
feelings of men even against their reason. Bonaparte himself
has had those who sympathized with him. But, if such be
our condition, if we really are so extremely sensitive on this
subject, do not gentlemen recollect the application of another
received maxim in relation to sudden — I will not say upstart —
elevation — that some who are once set on horseback know not
and care not which way they shall ride
*' I have found the gentleman from New York always agree-
able and polite in his deportment; I feel for him every sort of
deference, but I beg him to recollect an old motto that always
occurs to me at the approach of everything in the shape of an
attack upon my country. It is: Nemo me impune lacessit, '"
In another debate on the same subject, he even declared
that he had rather take the chance of war with the Holy
Alliance of Europe than lose one representative on the
floor of the House from Virginia. * On another occasion
he said:
** Whatever is to be the fate of this bill, whether this splendid
project [surveys for roads and canals] shall or shall not go into
operation now or be reserved for the new reign, the approach
of which is hailed with so much pleasure, my place must be
either in the obscurity of private life or in the thankless and
profitless employment of attempting to uphold the rights of
the States and of the people so long as I can stand — more
especially the rights of my native State, the land of my sires,
which, although I be among the least worthy or least favored
of her sons, and, although she may allot to me a stepson's por-
tion, I will uphold so long as I live.**^
Despite the appellation of '*The Hannibal of the West"
which he gave to George Rogers Clark, and the expedition
of the two Virginians, William Clark and Meriwether
Lewis, which has been recently commemorated by a singu-
*A.oJ C, 1821--22, V. 1, 903. » A, of C, Id., v. I, 946.
»il. of C, 1823-24, V. I, 1310.
222 John Randolph of Roanoke
larly beautiful moniunent at Charlottesville, Randolph
regarded with no little distrust our westward expansion.
"When I hear, " he said in the debate on the Apportionment
Bill of 1822, "of settlements at the Coxmcil Bluffs, and of bills
for taking possession of the mouth of the Columbia River, I
turn not a deaf ear but an ear of a different sort to the sad
vaticinations of what is to happen in the length of time,
believing, as I do, that no Government, extending from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, can be fit to govern me or those whom
I represent. There is death in the pot, compound it how you
will. No such government can exist because it must want the
common feeling and common interest with the governed which
is indispensable to its existence. ***
This pinched view of our national destiny was not due to
a lack of kindling imagination, for with that faculty he
was richly endowed ; but to the fear of the menace to the
political supremacy of Virginia and what it guarded which
lurked in every westward extension of our national empire.
This comes out very clearly in what he prophetically said
on another occasion, when he was referring to the act by
which the Northwest Territory was ceded by Virginia to
the Union.
"But, by that act, the great river Ohio, in itself a natural
limit — not a line drawn by your surveyors who at the time did
not dare to go over and chop with a tomahawk a line in the
vast forests, then imaginary states — that natural limit is made
(I speak in the spirit of foresight) the permanent and tuifading
line of future division, if not in the Government, in the councils,
of the Country."*
Indeed, to such a pitch was his alarm aroused by what
was taking place in the West, that he was ready to regret
one of the most creditable episodes in his entire career;
that is, the part he took in the acquisition of Louisiana.
M. oj C, 1821-22, V. I, 820. M. oj C, 1821-22, V. 1, 942.
Randolph as a Statesman 223
**I for one," he exclaimed in the same speech, "although
forewarned, was not forearmed. If I had been, I have no
hesitation in declaring that I would have said to the imperial
Dejanira of modem times — take back your fatal present! I
would have staked the free navigation of the Mississippi on
the sword, and we must have gained it. "^
Not only did Randolph pride himself upon not having
voted for but one amendment to the Federal Constitution,
but he declared that he had never voted in favor of the
admission of any state into the Union. ^ '* The children of
the second marriage," he once declared, "should not
sweep away the whole estate. "^
How hostile he was to most measures, looking to our
national defence, we have already seen. He began his
political career by terming our regular soldiery "rag-a-
muffins," and from that time to the end of his political
career, it was for him an object of fierce vituperation.
At one time, he seems to have recognized the fact that the
maintenance of a small regular army for such ptuposes as
the protection of New Orleans, the chastisement of the
Indians, or the repulse of Canadian incursions was neces-
sary^; but, beyond these limited purposes, the prof essional
soldier was anathema maranatha to him. In fact, he once
said that there was a time, and he wished he might live to
see it again, when the legislators of the country outnum-
bered the rank and file of the army and the officers to
boot. * Once, alluding to the professional soldier, he even
poured out his scorn in words like these : '* I do say that I
never see one of those useless drones in livery crawling on
the face of the earth that my gorge does not rise — that I do
not feel sick. I see no reason why we should not maintain
sturdy beggars in rags as well as beggars of another de-
^ A, of C, 1821-22, V. I, 943.
« Reg. of Debates, 1825-26, v. 2, Part i, 354.
* A, of C, 1816-17, V. 2, 467. < A, of C, 1811-12, V. i| 422.
*A.ofC., 1821-22, V. 1,819.
224 John Randolph of Roanoke
scription in tinsel. " ' His support of the navy, to say the
least, was very illiberal. ^ It is a gratification, however, to
realize that, in course of time, his eyes were opened to the
vital importance of a strong fleet to our safety. "Not that
he denied," he is reported as saying in the debate on
Commercial Intercourse in 1817, "that, if this country
was to be defended against a great maritime power, it
must be by a fleet ; on that point he had not the slightest
doubt. "^ But again we must remind the reader that, in
his opposition to a considerable aimy and navy, Randolph
was probably the mouthpiece of a vast majority of his
fellow-countrymen. His power to express his feelings
with declamatory energy was simply superior to theirs.
Nor should it be forgotten that Randolph worked out for
himself what he conceived to be a good alternative system
of national defence for the United States. In season and
out of season, he insisted that every able-bodied man in
the land should be armed, and it was a part of his defensive
scheme also that our coasts should be defended by mobile
batteries. In one of his earlier speeches, he said :
**He wished to see the public treasure employed in putting
arms into the hands of all who were capable of bearing them,
and in providing heavy artillery; not in the erection of a naval
force which, whether great or small, unless it too could retreat
beyond the mountains, must fall into the hands of the enemy.
If they wanted a force that should combine strength with
simplicity, ready at all times for the public protection, they
had such a force amply in their power. "^
Properly enlarged and extended, Randolph's idea of
arming the entire militia of the country was eminently
sovmd, and could readily have been developed into the
^ A,of C, 1809-10, V. 2, 1980.
«i4. of C, 1808-09, V. 3, 1348; 1809-10, V. 2, 1612; 1809-10, V. 2, 1994;
1809-10, V. 2, 2015; 1807-08, V. I, 829.
« A, of C, 1816-17, V. 2, 830. < A, of C, 1807-08, V. I, 1 169.
Randolph as a Statesman 225
system of universal military training which, it is now
generally conceded, is the true military ideal for our
cotmtry; and, if his idea of flying coast-batteries is no
longer practicable, perhaps it is only because it has been
rendered obsolete by the tremendous power and range of
modem naval ordnance, which he could not well antici-
pate. Nor can any of the convictions held by Randolph
in regard to the national defence be set down to a lack of
intrepidity or to mere besotted pacifism, such as was so
common in the United States on the eve of the recent
World War. His heart was a brave one, and never was
there a head in which less inane enthusiasm was lodged,
(a) As his stand with regard to Spanish encroachments
at the time of his break with the Jefferson administration
demonstrated, he was quick enough to fly at any cock that
trespassed upon our own barn-yard. His theory simply
was that the policy of non-entanglement with European
discord had come down to us as a wise tradition of policy;
that, happily for us, the Atlantic interposed a wide and
impassable fosse between us and the Old World ; and that,
if we would only safe-guard our coasts with a well-armed
citizenry and proper trains of artillery, there would be no
occasion for our incurring the burden and peril of great
military and naval armaments. Europe was then really
3,000 miles away from us, and men and munitions of war
could be transported to our shores only in squads and
driblets. But, when the Leopard made the Chesapeake the
subject of its wanton outrage, Randolph, as we have seen,
flamed up into burning resentment. He was for vindi-
cating the violated honor of the country instanter, and,
afterwards reverting to the incident, he said: "We spoke
of war if reparation were denied, and I do trust in God that
Quebec would have been in ashes if Great Britain had
avowed the attack."* ''It,** he said, referring to the
language of Talleyrand, in opposing our boundary claims
« i4. of C, 1807-8, V. 2, 2034.
VOL. II — IS
226 John Randolph of Roanoke
in regard to Florida, "will ring in my ears with that of Mr.
Champagny, and with the thunder of the guns of the
Leopard, as long as I live."'
A strong spirit of international sympathy could hardly
have been expected of Randolph, because it is only since
his day that such a thing as a real international conscious-
ness can be said to have come into being. It was natural
that he should have felt in his time, as the wise statesmen
who preceded him had felt, that, the less we allowed
the concerns of our national life to become interlaced with
those of the jarring nations of Europe, the better. Ran-
dolph's powers of observation and reflection were, of
course, hobbled by many more or less imperious predilec-
tions and prejudices. He was a member of the ancient
landed aristocracy of Virginia, and he foimd it difficult in
many respects to rid himself of its social bias and peculiar
conceptions. Fee tails, primogeniture, and the freehold
suffrage were all hallowed by a certain sort of sanctity in
his eyes, and shut off from them that larger vision of uni-
versal suffrage, universally educated, which is the ideal of
our own time; like the North Pole before Peary, often
despaired of but never renounced. Randolph was also
strongly swayed by sectional influences, but not to such
an extent as to prevent him from forming friendly personal
connections with more than one Northern member of
Congress. He found the same difficulty in understanding
the New England character that the New Englander
found in understanding the Virginian character, and no
greater, so far as we can see; forming our opinion from
hasty judgments about "Yankees," which we find here
and there, in his letters, and the reservations which such
men as Josiah Quincy and Elijah H. Mills, of Massachu-
setts, preserved in their friendly social intercourse with
him. (a) He told Josiah Quincy on one occasion that he
never intended to set his foot on the farther bank of the
' A. of C, 1807-08, V. 2, 2031.
Randolph as a Statesman 227
Hudson, but that if he did, Quincy's nouse was the first
that he would enter, '(b)
"I was bom in allegiance to George III.; the Bishop of
London (Terrick) was my diocesan," he once wrote to Key.
"My ancestors threw off the oppressive yoke of the mother
country, but they never made me subject to New England in
matters spiritual or temporal; neither do I mean to become
so voltmtarily."*
Randolph's failure to get along yrith the Northern Demo-
crats in the House during the Jefferson administration,
was largely responsible for his fall from leadership ; and it
was only through the diplomatic brokerage of Van Buren,
"rowing to his object with muffled oars," that he was
brought into harmony with them again.
But, as a statesman, Randolph is to be judged by no such
latter-day tests. He was a public man of the early 19th,
and not of the 20th, century ; and there are statesmen of lost
as well as of won causes. If, for no other reason, his posi-
tion as a statesman is secure, first, because he was the "tm-
usual phenomenon" of the House (to use a term borrowed
from John Adams) , ^ during the brief dewy era of f rugal-
it>', retrenchment, and reform, and new-bom RepubUcan
principles which made Jefferson as nearly an universally
popular Messiah as the diversities of human convictions
and sympathies will ever permit any man to be ; secondly,
because his searching common sense, eloquence and incor-
ruptible integrity, even in opposition, scotched many an
ill-digested and pernicious measure, and thirdly, because
he fuUy deserved the tribute paid to him by the resolu-
tions, adopted at Prince Edward Court House a few weeks
after his death, which ran in these words: "Resolved that
in his death, we deplore the loss of the most intelligent,
« Life of Quincy, 267. » Sept. 25, 181 8, Garland, v. 2, 103.
i Letter to Rush, June 22, 1806, Old Family Letters, 100.
228 John Randolph of Roanoke
the most consistent, and the most intrepid, advocate of the
Rights and Sovereignty of the States."*
Dtiring the i)eriod when the sarcastic eloquence of
Randolph reigned pre-eminent over the deliberations of
the Federal Representatives (to borrow again from John
Adams)' he performed with conspicuous success all the
tasks imposed upon him as a statesman in the committee
room and in the conference chamber of the President.
Sawyer tells us that he was the confidential friend of
JeflFerson from 1801 until his breach with him in 1806;
and, during this time, conducted himself as the privileged
and almost exclusive champion of executive policy on the
floor of the House. ^ By Benton we are told that, when-
ever Randolph arrived in Washington, at the beginning of
a session of Congress, he found awaiting him an invitation
from Jefferson to dine with him at the White House the
next day; so that they could fully discuss together the
business of the session. Many years after this i)eriod,
Randolph said on the floor of the House that, "when he
was intimate with the members of the Cabinet, he had
been let into their secrets, and, perhaps, too deeply into
them. " ^ (a) George Tucker states that, as Chairman of
the Committee of Ways and Means, Randolph was "over-
bearing and dictatorial with his associates — self-willed
and impracticable with the Executive."* The first of
these charges, so far as we are aware, is supported by no
evidence. We have already seen how eager Randolph's
colleagues on the Committee of Ways and Means were in
1806 to restore him to its Chairmanship. In one of his
letters to Jefferson, too, at any rate, he manifested, as the
reader has already learned, a keen desire to disabuse the
mind of Jefferson of the possible impression that he had
meant a reproach to him. Nor, so far as we are aware, is
« Clerk's Office, Cir. Ct., Prince Edw. Ct. House, Va.
* Works, V. I, 203. * Pp. 24 & 25.
*A.of C, 1815-16, V. I, 727, « Life of Jefferson^ v. 2. 206.
Randolph as a Statesman 229
there any evidence to support the charge made against
Randolph by Tucker that he did not have the business
habits, or knowledge of details, or powers of expounding
what was intricate or obscure, which his position in the
House sometimes required.* The Annals of Congress
show that he was very industrious and systematic in the
discharge of his duties, as Chairman of the Committee of
Ways and Means, or as chairman or member of other
committees, on which he served during the administration
of Jefferson. On one occasion, Samuel Smith, who had -
been a business man of long experience and high standing,
before he became a member of the House, expressed his
astonishment at the readiness with which Randolph, as
Chairman of the Committee of Ways and Means, ex-
plained an obscure and intricate matter.' Sawyer also
speaks of Randolph's promptitude, as Chairman of that
Committee, in making all the necessary explanations on
all points on which objections were raised from any quarter
of the House. In 1819, Randolph made unchallenged the
statement that, during the greater part of the administra-
tion of Thomas Jefferson, the expenditures of the Govern-
ment had been generally within the appropriations, and
that no sum appropriated to one object had ever been
diverted to another. ^ But what could so conclusively
evince the merits of Randolph, as the Chairman of the
Committee of Ways and Means, as the marked reluctance
with which, as Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallatin
saw the man, who had been his right arm in protecting
the revenues of the country, displaced by a man who
shortly afterwards himself felt constrained to pay a com-
pliment to the transparent clearness with which Ran-
dolph always presented any subject to which he might
address himself on the floor of the House ?^ (a) Nor will
the idea that Randolph's political career was wholly
» Life of Jefferson, v. 2, 207. * A. of C, 1802-03, 631.
i A, of C, 1819-20, V. I, 817. ^A. of C, 1808-9, V. 3, 716.
230 John Randolph of Roanoke
devoid of constructive suggestions bear examination.
His recommendation, while he was Chairman of the Com-
mittee of Ways and Means, of the House, that a public
printer be appointed to do the printing work of the Gov-
ernment proved a beneficent reform when carried into
effect. To Randolph also Sawyer accredits "the substi-
tution under the appropriate heads of specific, instead of
general and indefinite, appropriations."' He also se-
cured the enactment of a standing appropriation of
$200,000 for arming the militia. ^
Another notable reform suggested by him was the
abolition of flogging in the army. This subject is men-
tioned in one of his letters to Andrew Jackson, in which he
endeavored to enlist the sympathy of Jackson in favor of
the abolition of the lash in the navy as well.
"I will take leave,'* Randolph said, "to call your attention
to another subject. I mean our naval discipline. At my
instance, the punishment of the lash was abolished in the
army; and, if I were in Congress, I should feel myself con-
strained to bring forward a similar motion in regard to the navy.
I know that common sailors are a very different class of men
from our militiamen, and will bear what the spirit of these last
cannot brook; but the scenes, which I witnessed on board the
Concord, were so revolting that I made up my mind never to
take passage again on board of a vessel of war — at least with a
newly-shipped crew. The men were raw; some of them
landsmen; most of them fishermen (not whalemen — they are
the best of seamen), utterly ignorant of the rigging or manage-
ment of a square-rigged vessel. The midshipmen had to show
them the various ropes, etc., the very names of which
they were ignorant of, and knew not where to look for
them; the Lieutenants were worn down, performing not their
own proper duties only, but those of the Midshipmen also, who
in turn were discharging the duties of all able-bodied seamen.
Pimishment by putting in irons, and by the colt, was continu-
' P. 44. » P. 44.
Randolph as a Statesman 231
ally going on. I do not know whether the cat was used or
not, as I always retreated to my stateroom to avoid the odious
spectacle which surprised and shocked my negro slaves. In
seven years, the same quantity of punishment could not be
distributed among the same number of slaves as was inflicted
in a voyage of three weeks from Hampton Roads to Ports-
mouth. What was done afterwards, I know not, having been
confined to my room and chiefly to my bed during the voyage
from England to Cronstadt."'
The Federal Sub-Treasury idea has been said to have
been conceived by Wm. Fitzhugh Gordon, of Virginia,
when a member of Congiess from Virginia, dtiring the
session of 1834-5,^ but the idea would seem to have been
first formed by Randolph, though to Gordon is unquestion-
ably due the credit of first making it a matter of practical
moment. In a letter to Thomas H. Benton, dated Dec.
12, 1829, Randolph said:
"You will search in vain 'Congressional History' for the
project mentioned by Hall, to whom I spoke of it more than
once. It was a creature of my own device — shown only to
two friends, one of whom is long since dead, but never brought
forward in public.
**Soon after Mr. Jefferson's accession, looking forward to the
termination of the United States Bank, and being much op-
posed to that or any similar institution, I turned my thoughts
to the subject, and devised a plan, which, as I conceived, would
supply all the duties and offices of the United States Bank, so
far as Government was concerned. It is obvious that the dis-
counting of private paper has no connection with the transfer
of public monies, or a sound paper currency. My plan was to
make the great custom-houses branches of our great national
bank of deposit — a sort of loan office, if you will. Upon the
deposits and monies, received for duties, Treasury notes,
receivable in all taxes, etc. of the United States to issue. The
' Oct. 24, 1 831, Libr. Cong.
* Wm. F. Gordon, by Gordon, 226, 229.
232 John Randolph of Roanoke
details you can easily conceive. The whole under the Secre-
tary of the Treasury and other great oflScers of the State. At
the time I speak of, the land oflSces were not in receipt of
sufficient sums to make their depositories similar to the great
custom houses, but, whenever large dues to government were
payable, the plan would be extended. This would give one
description of paper, bottomed upon substantial capital, and,
whensoever Government might stand in need of a few millions,
instead of borrowing their own money from a knot of brokers
on the credit of said brokers, it might, under proper restrictions,
issue its own paper in anticipation of future revenues or taxes
to be laid; such notes to be cancelled within a given time. "'(a)
If Randolph did not originate or sponsor more construc-
tive ideas than he did, it should be remembered that it
was partly, at any rate, because, for far the greater part of
his career, he sustained a relation of detachment from the
party agencies by which such ideas are usually originated
and carried into execution.
The principles, upon which the first administration of
Jefferson was conducted, are set forth by Randolph in his
speech in the House on Jan. 13, 1813.
**Is it necessary for me at this time of day," he said, **to
make a declaration of the principles of the Republican party?
Is it possible that such a declaration could be deemed orthodox
when proceeding from lips so unholy as those of an excommuni-
cant from that chtirch ? It is not necessary. These principles
are on record; they are engraved upon it indelibly by the press
and will live as long as the art of printing is suffered to exist.
It is not for any man at this day to undertake to change them;
it is not for any man, who then professed them, by any guise
or circimilocution to conceal apostacy from them; for they
are there — ^there in the book. What are they? They have
been delivered to you by my honorable colleague. What are
they? Love of peace, hatred of offensive war, jealousy of the
State Governments towards the General Government and of
» Jackson Papers, v. 74, Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Statesman 233
the influence of the Executive Government over the co-ordi-
nate branches of that Government ; a dread of standing armies ;
a loathing of public debt, taxes and excises; tenderness for the
liberty of the citizen; jealousy, Argus-eyed jealousy of the
patronage of the President."'
"This Masked Monarchy — ^for such our Government
is," was one of his utterances and it well summed up his
general attitude towards the Federal authority. *
To all the RepubUcan principles to which Randolph
pledged his early faith, he remained unswervingly faithful
during his entire political life, first of all, because he
earnestly believed in them, and had practised them when
he was the leader of the House ; and secondly, because, after
he ceased to be the leader of the House, he was never again
cogently required by circiunstances to reconcile political
abstractions with the despotic exigencies of political
administration.
In or out of oflBce, however, Randolph, as a public man,
was governed by motives as pure and as disinterested as
any to which an American statesman has ever responded.
Morse, one of the last biographers of Jefferson, reaches the
conclusion that, in abandoning the Jefferson administra-
tion, Randolph was influenced by thoroughly conscien-
tious motives. Indeed, he even thinks that Randolph
can be set down as a political purist ^ ; and his opinions are
in harmony with what was thought of Randolph by many
of his own contemporaries. "On all private claims, or
where his judgment was not warped by party spirit, he
voted without fear, favor, or affection," says Sawyer.^
And then Sawyer tells us, by way of illustration, how
Randolph, on one occasion, was lifted in a crippled condi-
tion into the house of Philip Barton Key at Georgetown,
and spent about a month there under the tender care of
his family, and yet shortly afterwards, when Key's title to
» A, of C, 1812-13, V. 3, 782. * A, of C, 1816-17, V. 2, 323.
» Amer. Statesmen Series, 278. * P. 32.
234 John Randolph of Roanoke
a seat in the House was contested, rose in the House and,
after warmly expressing his obligations to Key for his
kindness, declared that he felt bound, under the circum-
stances, to vote in favor of the contestant. '
One of the most valuable witnesses that we have to the
character of Randolph is Thomas H. Benton, who knew
him well. In his chapter in his Thirty Years' View, on
Randolph, he pays him this remarkable tribute:
** His parliamentary life was resplendent in talent — elevated
in moral tone — always moving on the lofty lines of honor and
patriotism and scorning everything mean and selfish. He was
the indignant enemy of personal and plunder legislation, and
the very scourge of intrigue and corruption. He reverenced
an honest man in the hvimblest garb, and scorned the dishonest,
though plated with gold."*
If anything, Randolph was too independent in his bear-
ing with respect to office and its advantages. In a letter
to his stepfather, he expressed the opinion that a report
that some appointment was to be offered to him was
totally destitute of foundation, adding :
*' I believe there must have been displayed in my demeanor
throughout my intercourse with every branch of the executive
somewhat of that independence which I have always felt of
their favor. There is no fear, believe me, that a person of this
description shall be importuned to accept appointments when
so many capable persons really want them.**^
No member of Congress ever soiled his hands less with
the abuses of patronage. There is a trace of the old-
fashioned inflation of speech, which we find in some of his
early letters, in these conmients in one of his letters to
Nicholson on executive patronage: "It is this monster
which threatens our destruction. . . . Will men pre-
'P. 32. *P. 474. * Dec. 26, 1 801, Lucas MSS.
Randolph as a Statesman 235
fer the loaves and fishes of the hour to the glory of rejuve-
nating their country or of restoring to our manners and
our language the nervous tone of independence."' He
had nothing but disdain, he said in a letter to Monroe, for
those ^' soi-disant*' Republicans who panted for military
command and the emolmnents of contracts. ^ In a later
letter to Nicholson, he replies to certain remarks of
Nicholson on the mode in which men were brought for-
ward to public notice by saying : "To me the tendency of
the power of appointment to oflBce (no matter to what
individual it be trusted) to debauch the nation and
to create a low, dirty, time-serving spirit is a much more
serious evil. "^ The disinterested principles, which John
Taylor, of Caroline, championed, and the men who pos-
sessed them, Randolph thought could not be too much
insisted on as the only bond of union among Republicans. ^
Nor were these mere empty professions. As strict as his
code of political ethics was, he can be truly said to have
lived up to it as nearly as a man can ever be expected to
live up to a rigorous code of any sort; and it is a very
pleasant thing to anyone who detests spoils politics to
feel that, despite the fact that Randolph was almost
entirely cut off during the greater part of his political life,
by reason of his political independence, from the .use of
political patronage, his standing with his constituents
remained essentially unimpaired. But he was fully cogni-
zant of its power under ordinary conditions. ** I know, "
he said on one occasion, ** that we can not give to those who
apply for offices equal to their expectations; and I also
know that with one bone I can call 500 dogs."^
It is the habit of most writers about Randolph to speak
' Oct. I, 1801, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
* Jan. 3, 1803, Libr. Cong.
J April 21, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
< Letter to Monroe, June 15, 1803, Libr. Cong.
» Reminiscences of Ben, Perley Poore^ v. i , 355.
236 John Randolph of Roanoke
of his severance from the Jefferson administration as if it
doomed him to entire political destruction; but the force
of this view is lost upon us. There were many chances
against Randolph ever reaching the Presidency under any
drctunstances, and, after all, as great and lasting fame,
perhaps, can be acquired in the House of Representatives
as in the Presidential Cabinet. His fame would certainly
not have been greater, we imagine, if he had been Gover-
nor of Virginia, and the only time that he ever really lost
reputation was when he was on his mission to Russia,
unless it were during his term as a Senator when he was
occasionally irresponsible. From the time that he ended
his connection with the Jefferson administration until he
declined re-election to the House in 1829, with the excep-
tion of his temporary occultation diuing the War of 1812,
and the term that he declined in 181 7, he had a seat in
Congress ; and, even when he was in the Senate, notwith-
standing his run-down mental condition at times, he
exerted a powerful influence over the course of federal
legislation and the fate of the Adams administration.
It is true that Randolph did not have the party backing,
which often adds so much to the usefulness of a member
of the House. It could not be expected of him, he said in
1807, !* that he should sink into that vile and supple thing,
an htunble follower, a pliant tool of a majority and tacitly
disavow the principles for which he had contended two
years before."' Later, he spoke of himself as "a desul-
tory kind of partisan acting on his own impulses;^" and
still later as "a feeble isolated individual."^ This lan-
guage, it is hardly necessary to say, was, in a measure,
conventional like his memorable words on another occa-
sion, when, apologizing for the extent to which he had
taxed the attention of the House, he said: "I ask its
patience, its pardon, and its pity. "^ Finally, his freedom
^ A,of C, 1807-08, V. I, 850. * A. of C, 1809-10, V. I, 149.
» A, of C, 1815-16, V. I, 533, 4 A. of C 1812-13, V. 3, 785.
Randolph as a Statesman - 237
from formal allegiance to party sat upon him so naturally
that he spoke of it as carelessly and amiably as he did on
one occasion of the class of old bachelors of which he de-
clared that he was a most unfortunate member.' For
instance, in 1820, he disclaimed any intention of speaking
of the Monroe administration; "for he knew," he said,
"perhaps less of them than any man in the nation."*
And, on a later occasion, his nonchalance was still more
pronounced; for, in a debate on the contingent expenses
of the House, he is reported to have used these words:
** They had made him for the first time in 20 years a present
at this session of a knife; and he believed he should carry it
home as spolia opima and hand it down as a trophy of his
public service of some 20 years, nearly 14 of which — just
double the time, that Jacob had served for Rachel — ^had been
spent in exposition to what is called Government; for he com-
menced his political apprenticeship in the ranks of opposition
and, could he add 14 more to them, he supposed some political
Laban would double his servitude and condemn him to toil in
the barren field of opposition; for he despaired of seeing any
man elected President whose conduct he should entirely approve.
He should never be in favor at court, as he had somehow as
great an alacrity at getting into a minority as honest Jack Fal-
staff had at sinking. It was perhaps the place he was best
fitted for, Mr. Randolph said, as he had not strength to
encounter the details and drudgery of business; habit had
rendered it familiar to him; and, after all, it was not without
its sweets as well as its bitters, since it involved the glorious
privilege of finding fault — one very dear to the depraved
condition of human nature.**^
Randolph jested in this way about his independence of
party because he could well afford to do so, with his
constituents so solidly arrayed behind him and so inalien-
ably devoted to him that even John Quincy Adams was
* A. of C, 1821-22, V. I, 823. * A, of C, 1819-20, V. I, 1068.
' A. rf C, 1819-20, V. 2, 1465.
238 John Randolph of Roanoke
compelled to admit the fact to the extent of saying that
they seemed to be as much enamored with him as Titania
was with the ass' head of Bottom. *
But anyone who formed the opinion that, when Ran-
dolph abjured party ties, he became, in the language of
the English ballad, a **lone and banished man," a mere
party outlaw, would be gravely at fault. After he severed
his connection with the Democratic Party, he not only hung
about its flanks, and, at times, threw its coliunns into
serious disorder, but, at times, he even induced its repre-
sentatives in the House to desert their own acknowledged
leaders and to fall in behind his dancing crest as it gal-
lantly rose and fell with the waves of parliamentary strifa
And, even after the standard of the Democratic Party had
passed into such masterful hands as those of Calhoun,
Clay, and Lowndes, and the patriotic impulses of the
country had become fervently enlisted in behalf of the
War of 1812, his influence was still great enough to mus-
ter some 15 democratic votes in opposition to the declara-
tion of war. Subsequently, when the issue of State sov-
ereignty had become more and more prominent ^th the
crusade against Southern slavery, and tariff, internal
improvement, and other political issues had become more
and more drawn to it, like so many straws and leaves to
a whirlwind, he was soon recognized as the ablest and most
resourceful advocate of the State-Rights creed, which the
ingenious intellect of Calhoun afterwards made subtler
but, if anything, weaker.
The truth is that, throughout Randolph's political
career, after he had thrown aside the re^ns of party leader-
ship in the House, he was always so successful in almost
every great debate, in which he took part, in mustering a
considerable body of supporters behind him that his
influence nearly acquired the dignity of that of an organ-
ized third party,
» MemoirSf v. 8, 328.
Randolph as a Statesman 239
We have already said enough to convey to the mind of
the reader the fact that jealousy of power in all its forms
was the index to his political life ; jealousy of the Execu-
tive; jealousy of the Judiciary; jealousy even of "King
Numbers" himself. If he was not jealous of the Legisla-
ture, it was only because he deemed its power, if anything,
too effectively counterpoised by that of the Executive and
Judiciary. He did, however, have a marked contempt,
half serious, half humorous, for the itch of legislation
which loads up the American Statute Book with so many
crude and superfluous laws. On this subject, he is thus
reported as speaking on one occasion in the House :
"We see about November — ^about the time the fogs set in —
men enough assembled in the various Legislattires, General
and State, to make a regiment; then the legislative maggot
begins to bite; then exists the rage to make new and repeal old
laws. I do not think we would find ourselves at all worse off
if no law of a general nature had been passed by either General
or State Governments for lo or 12 years last past. Like Mr.
Jefferson, I am averse to too much regulation — ^averse to
making the extreme medicine of the Constitution our daily
food.""
On another occasion, the general bias with which Ran-
dolph approached every exercise of governmental author-
ity, found expression in these terse and felicitous words:
" Ours is not a government of confidence. It is a govern-
ment of diffidence and of suspicion, and it is only by being
suspicious that it can remain a free government."^
Even his devotion to State Sovereignty and his hostility
to professional soldiers and excise-men were but manifes-
tations of the same intense dread of perverted power. In
one of his letters to his friend Edward Booker, he said:
"It [the side espoused by Randolph] is the rights of the
States against Federal encroachment; it is the liberty of the
« A. of C, 1815-16, V. I, 1132. * A. of C, 1807-08, V. 1, 1345.
240 John Randolph of Roanoke
citizen (subject, if you please) against all encroachment, State
or Federal; that is and ever has been my creed. I challenge
any man to put his finger upon any vote or act of mine that
contravenes it, or to show the vote given by me which tends to
abridge the rights of the States, the franchises of the citizen, or
even to add to his burthens in any shape; of personal service
or of contribution to the public purse."*
Except, he added, the Mediterranean Fund which was
a fund created for a limited time and a specific object.
In the case of regular soldiers and excise-men, his
impatience with governmental restraints sometimes es-
caped in such surcharged phrases as to take him for the
time being out of the sphere of responsible statesmanship ;
as, when urged by his maxim that a standing army is the
death by which all republics have died,' he defined a
regular soldier as a slave who sells himself to be shot at
for 6 pence a day^; or, as when his morbid antipathy to
Executive intrusion into personal privacy caused him to
denounce an excise-man as ** a hell hound of tyranny. " ^ (a)
In passing judgment upon such extreme language as
these last words, we must remember that Randolph's
political education, as boy and man, ran back to the first
struggle between the Federalists and the anti-Federalists,
and that abomination of excise taxes as well as standing
armies was one of the conspicuous features of the political
thought and feelings of that time.
As for the principle of State Sovereignty, we must also
remember that, for many years of our earlier political his-
tory, it was as ardently cherished by the Northern as the
Southern States of the Union. Henry Adams, in his John
Randolphj goes so far as to say that the right of a State to
interpose in the case of a deliberate, palpable, and danger-
ous exercise by the Federal Government of powers, not
' Georgetown, Feb. 9, 1816, Libr. Cong.
^A. of C, 1807-08, V. 2, 1908.
* Id., p. 1825. * A. of C, 1823-24, V. 2, 2365,
Randolph as a Statesman 241
granted to it by the Federal Constitution (the very lan-
guage of James Madison in the Virginia Resolutions of
1798), was "for many years the undisputed faith of avast
majority of the American people. " ' Nor was John Ran-
dolph more of a rhapsodist in hymning the glory of Vir-
ginia than Josiah Quincy was in hymning that of Massa-
chusetts; (a) but the difference between Randolph and
most of his State-Rights contemporaries is that he was
always prepared to defend his State-Rights convictions
with force. Such was his position during the period of
the Alien and Sedition Laws, which he once called the
Reign of Terror, when, if his belief was well-founded,
Virginia went so far as to establish an armory for the
purpose of resisting, if necessary, Federalist tyranny.
Such, too, was his position when he said of the Tariff Bill
of 1824:
"It marks us out as the victims of a worse than Egyptian
bondage; it is a barter of so much of our rights, of so much of
the fruits of our labor for political power to be transferred to
other hands. It ought to be met, and I trust it will be met, in
the Southern country as was the Stamp Act, and by all those
measures which I will not detain the House by recapitulating
which succeeded the Stamp Act, and produced the final
breach with the Mother Country, which took about lo years
to bring about, as I trust, in my conscience, it will not take as
long to bring about similar results from this meastire, should
it become a law.*''
And such, finally, was his position, when Andrew Jack-
son threatened to invade South Carolina as Abraham
Lincoln afterwards actually invaded Virginia.
If the mortal duel between the North and the South had
to take place, his idea was to engage the former in it while
the wind and the sun were not so much in her favor.
Of all the episodes in Randolph's political career, the
» P. 35. * A, of C, 1823-24, V. 2, 2360.
VOL. n — x6
242 John Randolph of Roanoke
one most open to attack is his opposition to the War of
1812; but, when the tinreasoning imptdses of national
pride are stifled, it may well be asked in our time whether
this opposition was not as wise as that which he asserted
so vigorously to the series of restrictive measures which
had no practical effect except that of manacling our hands
behind our back while our enemies were beating tis in the
face.
The policy of the United States before the War of 1 8 12
should have been, as Randolph contended : to eschew, as
long as possible, any active alliance with either France or
England, and especially all fraudulent evasions of obliga-
tions imposed upon us by our neutrality, but, in case we
had to turn to one side or the other, to escape the crossed
swords that were playing in deadly carte and tierce above
our heads, to take our place beside the English democracy
rather than beside the mil'tary despotism of Napoleon,
which, if his plans had not miscarried at Boulogne, might
well have left to the United States, as Randolph said at
the time, nothing but the poor privilege of Ulysses — ^that
of being the last to be devoured. If we had to become a
belligerent, the events which led up to the War of 1812
pointed as unmistakably to the wisdom of an entente be-
tween the United States and Great Britain as did the
events, which led up to the recent World War, when
another monster was seeking to set up another Moloch.
Great Britain did not have the general feeling of respect
and good will for the United States then that she had on
the eve of the great World War ; that is true enough. Nor
did the American people, as a whole, have as much good
feeling for England then as they have now. These facts,
of course, made the situation much less tractable than it
would otherwise have been; but, if the War of the Ameri-
can Revolution had not been so recent, and American
gratitude to France for the service, rendered by her to us
in that war, and the influence of the French Revolution
Randolph as a Statesman 243
upon the temper of our people had not been so strong, it is
unlikely that the conduct of England to the United States,
before our declaration of war in 1812, would have been
attended by the arrogant outrages and the vexatious pre-
tensions which urged on the war. As it was, when our
declaration was made, the British Government had dis-
avowed the Chesapeake outrage, the impressment of our
seamen, which was our real grievance against England,
had sunk almost out of sight, and the obnoxious Orders of
Council, which had also been a just cause of national
resentment on our part had been actually revoked, though
not to our knowledge. Under such circumstances, with
a little more patience for the desperate necessities of Eng-
land in her struggle not only for her own preservation, but
for that of htunan freedom eversrwhere, including the
United States; in other words, with just a little more
reflection, deliberation, and delay we might have wholly
averted a war which might well be a soiwce of almost
unmixed regret to both England and us if it had not
brought about the establishment of the undefended
boundary line between Canada and the United States,
which is now the surest pledge of peace between the latter
cotmtries. We should either have declared war against
England earlier, or not at all ; and that Randolph should
have had such a clear insight into the larger significance
of the contest between England and France, which pro-
voked the War of 18 12, and should have asserted his
repugnance to that war so fearlessly, are among the things,
we think, that vindicate most strikingly his sagacity and
foresight as a statesman. Nor could there be a better
illustration of the rapidity with which his own constitu-
ents, who rejected him in 181 3, awoke, as the result of
bitter disillusionment, to the wisdom of his counsels, than
the fact that thev forced him from his retirement and
re-elected him to Congress in 181 5.
But, in no respect, was Randolph a truer statesman
244 John Randolph of Roanoke
than in his aversion to the institution of negro slavery.
The slave traffic he simply abhorred ; and there is little room
for doubt that, if he could have freed all the negro slaves
in Virginia under proper conditions he would have freed
them. On one occasion, he wrote to Wm. Leigh from
Europe, asking him to remember him, in the kindest
manner, to all his slaves and added, that he wished that
he could, by a word, make them all white.' It was no
misconceived enthusiasm which inspired the abolitionist
poet, John G. Whittier, to write his melodious lines on
Randolph. And Randolph's hostility to slavery was not
only founded upon genuine humanitarian impulses, but
upon a clear statesmanlike sense of the blighting effect
exerted by slavery upon the economic welfare of Virginia.
"Suppose," he once said, ''instead of ceding her North-
western Territory to Congress, Virginia had at the peace
of 1783 driven every negro and mulatto, bond or free,
across the Ohio; would she now, think you, be less popu-
lous or powerful than she is at present?"" The report,
which he rendered in 1803, ^s the Chairman of a Commit-
tee appointed to consider a memorial, which had come up
to the House from Indiana, praying for the temporary
exemption of that territory from the anti-slavery pro-
hibition in the Northwest Territory Ordinance of 1787,
is one of the most notable productions of his pen. It
summed up the conclusions of the Committee in these
words :
''That the rapid population of the State of Ohio sufficiently
evinces, in the opinion of your Committee, that the labor of
the slave is not necessary to promote the growth and settle-
ment of Colonies in that region; that this labor, demonstrably
the dearest of any, can only be employed to advantage in the
cultivation of products more valuable than any known to that
« Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Cl'k's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersbtirg,
Va.
•A.qfC^ 1823-24, V. 2, 2381.
Randolph as a Statesman 245
quarter of the United States; and the Committee deem it
highly dangerous and inexpedient to impair a provision wisely
calculated to promote the happiness and prosperity of the
Northwestern Country and to give strength and security to
that extensive frontier. In the salutary operation of this
sagacious and benevolent restraint, it is believed that the
inhabitants of Indiana will at no very distant date find ample
remuneration for a temporary privation of labor and
emigration.""
It is true that Randolph did not often give public
expression to his disapproval of slavery, and, as we shall
see, Nancy Randolph once taunted him with what she
supposed to be the inconsistency between his avowals of
enmity to it in private and his reticence on the subject in
public. There were many reasons, of course, besides
mere selfish timidity, based on deference for a formidable
body of public opinion, why he should not have been more
outspoken, as a public representative, than he was in the
announcement of his anti-slavery convictions. Much
besides the institution of slavery was involved in the long
sectional conflict between the North and the South, and
not a little is to be lost by too frank admissions in political
as well as other contests. Moreover, Randolph was kept
entirely too busy throughout his political life in insisting
upon the constitutional guarantees which the Federal
Constitution had thrown around slave property, and in
guarding the peace of the South against external attack,
to have much time left for promoting the emancipation
of the negro in Virginia. Nothing, however, could furnish
a more convincing proof of the extent, to which the move-
ment of the forces making for emancipation in Virginia,
was retarded by outside interference, than the fact that
Randolph never wavered in his intent to emancipate all
his own slaves, though almost incessantly kept provoked
to the highest pitch in his later years by encroachments
« Atner. State Papers, Pub. Lands, v. i, 146.
246 John Randolph of Roanoke
on what he deemed to be the constitutional rights of the
South.
The fragmentary Reminiscences of the Rev, John T.
Clark, an Episcopal Rector of Halifax County, who knew
Randolph well, is a doctmient of the highest value as testi-
mony to the nature of Randolph's views respecting
slavery:
** Although in public, and particularly in Congress," the
Rev. Mr. Clark says, **Mr. Randolph was the ready and
fearless defender of the slaveholder, and would not yield the
smallest of his rights to a stranger or an enemy, nor tolerate for
one moment any interference between him and his slaves; (a)
yet never did he, like the superficial and incompetent State's
Rights Politicians of the present generation, who precipitated
the South into ruin — never did he defend slavery in the ab-
stract. Never did he go to the length of his successors in
public life, who rushed in where wise men, not to say anything of
angels — feared to peep, and claimed for slavery a divine right.
On the contrary, like Washington and Jefferson and the other
statesmen of their day and character, who gave Virginia her
reputation, a reputation which no one but the mad empirics
of her own bosom could destroy, he looked upon slavery as an
evil, he mourned over its existence, he regretted that he ever
owned a slave; and, although, like almost everybody else in
his day, he regarded it as ineradicable, yet never did he conceal
in his private intercourse with his associates his heartfelt
and deep-seated conviction that it was a social, moral and
political evil. Moreover, he was always anxious as to the
comfort of his slaves; he often preached to them himself,
and sometimes he would get ministers of the gospel, in whom
he had confidence, of any Church, to preach to them. Yet,
while doing this, he did not any more than the rest of us see
the hopelessness of any real change in the character of the great
body of slaves while in slavery. Indeed, in one thing he was
much behind many slaveholders who laid claim to anything
like his intellect and experience, but who were guided by a
higher and better principle than even genius or intellect can
give — even the love of God in Christ Jesus — ^in his opposition
Randolph as a Statesman 247
to the Colonization Society. After a short hesitation, he
settled down in tinifonn, if not bitter, opposition to this noble
Society, which, amid opposition and ridicule from so many
and such different people and sections, has done so much and
is still in the way of doing so much more for the black man and
for Africa. But still, notwithstanding his opposition to the
Colonization Society, he gave his dying testimony to the value
of freedom, as also to lus hope and belief that in due time
freedom and its accompanying advantages would elevate the
race; for surely a man of John Randolph's inteUigence, to say
nothing of his good will to his slaves, would not have emanci-
pated 300 — ""(a)
So far as we know, the only support that Randolph ever
gave to the plans of the African Colonization Society was
to attend and address a public meeting held under its
auspices in the City of Washington on December 21, 18 16,
at which Henry Clay presided and spoke with his usual
force and fervor. In this address Randolph said that,
with a view to seciuing the support of all the citizens of
the United States, it ought to be made known that the
colonization scheme tended to secure the property of every
master to, in, and over his slaves ; that it was a notorious
fact that the free negroes were regarded by every slave-
owner as one of the greatest sources of the insecurity and
unprofitableness of slave property; that they excited
discontent among their fellow-beings; that they acted as
channels of communication, not only between different
slaves, but between slaves of different districts; and that
they were the depositories of stolen goods and the pro-
moters of mischief. Apart then from those higher and
nobler motives which had already been so well presented,
the slave-owner, Randolph declared, was in a worldly
sense interested in throwing this population out of the
bosom of the people. He further said that, if a place for
colonizing the free negroes and a mode for transporting
* Bouldin. MSB.
248 John Randolph of Roanoke
them there could be provided, there were hundreds, nay
thousands, of citizens who would, by mantimitting their
slaves, relieve themselves from the cares attendant upon
their possession. '
It is manifest that the object of these observations was
to soothe the misgivings of the slaveholder about the new
movement into quiescence ; and it is equally manifest, we
think, that the countenance given to it by Randolph was
quite guarded. It was impossible, we should say, for
such a practical mind as his to have reposed much confi-
dence at any time in such a visionary enterprise as that of
the African Colonization Society.
However this may be, in 1826 he even refused to pre-
sent a petition of the Society to the Senate, although
entreated to do so by Francis Scott Key. His reasons for
the refusal were fully presented to Chief Justice Marshall,
and, afterwards, when he was reporting his conversation
with the Chief Justice to Dr. Brockenbrough, he did so in
the following narrative form :
**That I thought the tendency of it bad and mischievous;
that a spirit of morbid sensibility, religious fanaticism, vanity,
and the love of display, were the chief moving causes of that
society.
**That true htmianity to the slave was to make him do a fair
day's work, and to treat him with all the kindness compatible
with due subordination. By that means, the master could
afford to clothe and feed him well, and take care of him in
sickness and old age; while the morbid sentimentalist could
not do this. His slave was unprovided with necessaries, unless
pilfered from his master's neighbors; because the owner could
not furnish them out of the profits of the negro's labor — there
being none. And, at the master's death, the poor slaves were
generally sold for debt (because the philanthropist had to go to
BANK, instead of drawing upon his crop), and were dispersed
from Carolina to the Balize; so that in the end the superfine
> Natl, InUttigencer^ Dec. 24, 1816.
Randolph as a Statesman 249
master turned out, like all other ultras y the worst that could be
for the negroes.
"This system of false indulgence, too, educates ( I use the word
in its strict and true meaning) all those pampered menials who,
sooner or later, find their way to some Fulcher, the hand-cuffs,
and the Alabama negro trader's slave-chain. How many such
have I met within the different *coffles* (Mungo Park) of slaves
that I had known living on the fat of the land, and drest as
well as their masters and mistresses. I wished all the free ne-
groes removed, with their own consent, out of the slave States
especially, but that, from the institution of the Passover to
the latest experience of man, it would be found that no two
distinct peoples could occupy the same territory, under one
government, but in the relation of master and vassal.
**The Exodus of the Jews was effected by the visible and
miraculous interposition of the hand of God; and that, without
the same miraculous assistance, the Colonization Society
would not remove the tithe of the increase of the free blacks,
while their proceedings and talks disturbed the rest of the
slaves."'
The real reproach to Randolph in his relations to
slavery is that he should not have had more sympathy
with the powerful movement in the Virginia Legislature
of 1832 which failed in the House to carry a proposition
looking to the gradual abolition of slavery in Virginia by
only 15 votes." This was just after the Nat Turner in-
surrection in Southampton County had taken place.
Then he had a better opportunity than he ever had on any
other occasion in his life to deal a shattering blow at the
institution which he cordially disliked in his heart. But,
if we can judge from a very imperfect report of his last
speech at Charlotte Court House, he was not in accord
with the movement ; for here is what he said :
*' There is a meeting-house in this village, built by a respect-
able denomination. I never was in it ; though, like myself, it is
* Garland, v. 2, 266.
' Va,*s Attitude Towards Slavery and Seusstan^ by B. B. Munford, 47.
250 John Randolph of Roanoke
mouldering away. The ptilpit of that meeting-house was
polluted by permitting a black African to preach in it. If I
had been there, I would have taken the imdrcumcised dog by
the throat, led him before a magistrate, and committed him to
jail. I told the ladies, they, sweet souls, who dressed their
beds with their whitest sheets, and uncorked for him their best
wine, [that they] were not far from having mulatto children.
* ' I am no prophet, but I then predicted the insurrection. The
insurrection came; was ever such a panic? Dismay was
spread through the country. I despised it when it was here.
To despise distant danger, is not true courage, but to despise
it when you have done all you could to avoid it, and it has
and would come, is true cotirage. Look at the conduct of our
last General Assembly. The speeches that were made there
were little dreamed of. What kind of doctrine was preached
on the floor of the House of Burgesses? If I had been there I
should have moved that the first orator, who took the liberty
to advance that doctrine, should be arrested and prosecuted
by the State's attorney."*
Very different was the grave, measured language in
which he had communicated to Nicholson, many years
before, the facts connected with the servile insurrection
headed by the negro, Gabriel.
** Rumor has doubtless acquainted you with an attempt at
insurrection made by the slaves of this State. It is now
ascertained to have been partial and ill concerted, and has been
quelled without any bloodshed, but that which streamed upon
the scaffold. The executions have been not so numerous as
might, under such cirumstances, have been expected. The
accused have exhibited a spirit, which, if it becomes general,
must deluge the Southern country in blood. They manifested
a sense of their rights, and contempt of danger, and a thirst for
revenge which portend the most unhappy consequences. In
this part of the community, no such temper has been exhibited;
nor has any apprehension prevailed except in Richmond and
its immediate neighborhood.
> Bouldin, 189.
Randolph as a Statesman 251
"A young negro man, a blacksmith, had projected the scheme
of firing the port of the city; taking possession of the stone
bridge, which connects the two quarters of the town, whilst
the inhabitants were busied with the fire; seizing the treasury
and the arsenal at the other extremity, then firing it, and
making a general massacre of the inhabitants. For this pur-
pose, he had manufactured a number of rude arms, had
collected his associates to the number of 5 to 600; and the
execution of his purpose was frustrated only by a heavy fall
of rain which made the water courses impassable. It does
not appear that the negroes of the city were concerned in the
plot. You have, doubtless, had the story with every exag-
geration, and will not be surprized to learn that our federalists
have endeavored to make an electioneering engine of it.
Monroe has been very active. The quiet of the capital is
secured by a competent miUtary force and all danger for the
present at an end.""
Josiah Quincy, the son of the eminent Federalist of the
same name, once asked Randolph who was the greatest
orator that he had ever heard; expecting that he would
answer ''Patrick Henry. " But, to his surprise, the reply
wa3 ; ** A slave. She was a mother, and her rostrum was
the auction block. " ' Between his repugnance to slavery,
and his jealous hostility to all efforts to abolish it ab extra,
Randolph was often visited with misconstruction. "I
have," he is reported as declaring on one occasion, ''no
hesitation in saying slavery is a curse to the master. I
have been held up, as any man will be, who speaks his
mind fairly and boldly, as a blackish sort of a white and a
whitish sort of a black — as an advocate for slavery in the
abstract."^ And that, on the whole, there was a lack of
coherence in the enunciation of his public views about
slavery, cannot be denied.
« Bizarre, Sept. 26, 1800, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
« Figures of the Past, by Josiah Quincy, 212.
» NUes Reg., v. 6 (3d series), 453, Aug. 26, 1826.
CHAPTER IX
Randolph as a Man
It would be a grievous misconception to imagine that
Randolph was wholly given over to politics, necessary as
an occasional escape from Roanoke to Washington was to
dispel the melancholy which always settled down upon
him when he was withdrawn for a considerable time from
political and social excitements. Sawyer tells us that,
outside of the House, Randolph would not talk politics;
preferring to discuss agricultural or other topics. * In his
Diary, he kept a minute record of the weather and of his
social activities and inserted in it besides an extraordinary
farrago of memoranda relating to many other miscellane-
ous subjects; but the references in this book to politics
are quite meagre. In other words, Randolph was not one
of those bores whose conversation is wholly subdued, like
the dyer's hand, to what he works in; he was not a mere
feverish politician; nor a mere ill-nattired satirist. He
was a man of the world ; a gentleman and a sportsman, as
well as a statesman; an orator, and a planter. He had a
keen zest for social intercourse with men and women ; he
entered with intense sympathy into the interests and
feelings of the young ; he deepy loved some of his relations ;
he was almost romantically attached to his intimate
friends; he devoured good books of all sorts; he was never
so happy as when travelling, and he had a passion for
horses, dogs, and guns.
» Sawyer, 45.
253
Randolph as a Man 253
All the traits of character which made him so many
enemies, which led Sergeant to put James Buchanan on
his guard against his friendship, " and Sawyer to declare
too broadly, that he was not much respected as a politician
or beloved as a man, " were referable to infirmity of temper.
He was proud, imperious, sensitive as the aspen leaf,
ftmdamentally Anglo-Saxon, but partly Celtic. No one
knew his shortcomings better than he himself; for he had
too much sotmd manhood not to confess and lament them
at times. There was a touch of false pride in his declara-
tion that he was descended from a race which was never
known to forsake a friend or to forgive a foe. ^ And there
was an element of extravagant self-disparagement in that
other declaration of his made at a time when he was labor-
ing in the throes of religious conversion, that his temper
was naturally impatient of injury but insatiably vindictive
under insult and indignity. ^ (a) But when, with the per-
fect frankness, which was one of the nobler features of his
character, he said in a letter to Dr. Brockenbrough that
his unprosperous life, as he called it, was the fruit of an
ungovernable temper, ^ his self -analysis was correct; and
it was doubtless the same cause for self-reproach which
was behind the remorse that he exhibited upon his death-
bed— asstuning that he was then responding to any
rational impulse at all.
Of the extraordinary instability of his temper and of
its tendency, when acutely irritated, not to stop short
even of aggressive malice, evidence is not wanting. It
shows that boorish or tactless words or conduct, which the
ordinary individual would resent with a frigid glance or a
contemptuous shrug at the most, were enough to excite
his choler to a high degree. A very good illustration of
this fact is afforded by an incident which Jacob Harvey
' Life 0} Buchanan, by G. T. Curtis, v. i, 29.
* P. 124. 3 Garland, v. 2, 248. < /rf., v. 2, 102.
» Id,, V. 2, loi.
254 John Randolph of Roanoke
has told us in his lively manner, which not infrequently
runs away with him: Among the fellow-passengers of
Randolph and himself on "the Amity'' was a good-hum-
ored but coarse-fibred Dutchman, whose rubs were soon
drawing electric sparks from Randolph.
"A whist party," says Harvey, "was made up; the Captain
and Mr. Randolph against the Dutchman and one of our
Yorkshire passengers. After the cards had been dealt, and
each gentleman had examined his hand, the Dutchman cried
out:
** 'I bet a guinea I get three tricks this time!*
*'*Done, Mr. ,' exclaimed Randolph instantaneously!
This alarmed his opponent, who had so often previously wit-
nessed Randolph's good luck, and who, moreover, had a
natural antipathy to losing his guineas. He therefore re-
examined his hand, and then said in a subdued tone:
** *0h, stop! I spoke too fast as I did not see. Eh! well
I will bet a guinea that I get two tricks!*
***Done Mr. ,' exclaimed Randolph in an excited
tone.
** *Ah no! What did I say? Let me look again. Oh! I
made a mistake, but I will bet on one trick anyhow.'
** 'Done Mr. !* exclaimed Randolph for the third time,
and now very much excited. His eyes sparkled, his lips were
compressed, and he was evidently very angry.
The Dutchman, however, either did not observe the change
in his manner, or, if he did, his love of money conquered his
fears; and, very composedly looking once more at his cards, he
said quite coolly :
** 'What are trumps? Oh! Spades you say! That is bad, I
forgot; and I won't bet at all.'
**By this time, Randolph was in a fury, and, before any of us
could interpose, he arose from his chair, threw his cards on the
table, fixed his eyes on Mr. , and said:
' * * Why you lubberly fellow, do you know where you are ? Is
this the first time you ever played with gentlemen? Are you
sure that you took a cabin passage? Captain where's his
ticket? You belong to the steerage. Sir! You are out of
Randolph as a Man 255
place, Sir! Three times you have offered to bet, and three
times have I taken it ; and now you back out, Sir !'
"Then, throwing down a guinea on the table, he continued:
'I believe I owe you a few shillings, Sir. Give me change this
instant. Sir. I will not remain another instant in your debt,
Sir. Come, Sir, the change; and then we shall be quits for-
ever.'
**Mr. was astounded. He opened his eyes and replied:
'Why Mr. Randolph, you make a great fuss about nothing. I
cannot change your guinea all in a hurry, and, if you'll only
listen to reason, I'll show you where .'
**But Randolph cut him short, and, in a very excited tone,
said: 'Give me change this moment. Sir; or by Heaven you
shall go ashore !' (We were then on the Banks of Newfound-
land). *Yes, Sir, you shall go ashore. I'll not remain in the
same ship with you, Sir. What, Sir! To back out of a bet with
a gentleman, and then defend your conduct? Go ashore. Sir!'
**Mr. , more and more confounded, exclaimed: *Now
Mr. Randolph, what do you get into such a passion for! Only
listen to reason, and I will show you where you are wrong; only
listen.'
** Randolph cut him short again in a perfect rage. * Wrong,
sir! And do you dare to tell me, John Randolph of Roanoke,
that I am wrong in a matter of honor? Wrong, sir, did you
say! Take thatr And, suiting the action to the word, he
thrust the candle across the table into Mr. 's face, and
then fell back on his seat quite exhausted."
The narrative is too long to be further continued ver-
batim, Mr. quietly arose, and left the cabin;
Randolph apologized to the other members of the com-
pany, and went off to his state-room. Later, Harvey
expostulated with Randolph, and the Captain took Mr.
aside, and told him that he was partly to blame
himself for the occurrence; receiving in reply the good-
natured assurance that Mr. did not mind what
Randolph had said at all, since he regarded him as half-
cracked, and felt certain that he would forget all about the
256 John Randolph of Roanoke
matter before the next day. The result was that amicable
relations were in time re-established between Randolph
and Mr. . But not permanently, until Randolph
had had occasion to administer another rebuke to
the thick-skinned Dutchman, and the latter had come to
realize that Randolph (to use one of Randolph's own
phrases) was not, like himself, made of brick earth, (a)
Then, the pair became so intimate that, when the rest of
the cabin passengers were reading, writing, or sleeping,
and Randolph was at a loss for an auditor, he would pin
Mr. in a comer, and keep him there for an hour
or two, listening to the Greek poetry which he made a
point of reading aloud to him. '
Manifestly, this story is tricked out with a good deal
of fanciful embroidery. Not to go further, we have been
told by Randolph himself that he knew only enough Greek
"to help him to the etymology of a word**'; but there is
enough truth in the story to illustrate our point.
How dangerous it is, however, to place too implicit a
trust in stories about Randolph, even when told by a sub-
stantially reliable anecdotist like Harvey, is impressed
upon us by another story in regard to Randolph's fiery
temper, which Harvey says was commtmicated to him by
Randolph himself.
Its burden is that a tall, matter-of-fact New Englander,
who had formed the idea of investing a part of the fortune,
that he had made as a tobacco merchant, in Roanoke,
asked Randolph, immediately after he had been tendered
the hospitality of the latter's table, what he would take
for "niggers and all " ; and was conducted by Randolph to
the boundary of his patrimonial lands and told that, if he
ever crossed this boundary again, to look out for Ran-
dolph's best rifle-ball.^ This story is evidently but a
variation, in the Darwinian process of evolution, to which
» The New Mirror, v. i, 331. « Nathan Loughborough MSS.
» The New Mirror, v. i, 354.
Randolph as a Man 257
anecdotes about famous men, especially when they relate
to eccentric types of character, are even more slavishly
subject than mammals or birds. Obviously, the same
story re-appears in a paper by Henry Carrington pub-
lished by Bouldin ; only in this instance the offender is a
Georgian, and awakens Randolph's wrath by telling him
that he was thinking that he was an eimuch. ^ The real
basis for the story is furnished us by John Randolph
Bryan, who was at Roanoke in 1818 or 18 19, when the
incident, out of which it sprang, occurred.
"The blackguard," he says, ** asked Mr. Randolph what he
would take for a servant — Hanno, I think — who was waiting at
the table; and Mr. Randolph gave the fellow a night's lodging
and the next morning told him that, but for his having eaten
his bread, he would have had him tied up to the roughest oak
tree in his yard and flogged by the overseer."*
Indeed, it is not too much to say that all the stories
which represent Randolph as breaking out into paroxysms
of indecent violence, or descending to vulgarity in conduct
or speech, should be received with the utmost distrust.
Except so far as they rest on the testimony in the Ran-
dolph will litigation, going to establish the insanity of
Randolph, or on other evidence relating to the different
periods, when he was insane, they emanate from dis-
gruntled overseers, personal or political enemies, or tat-
tling coimtryside gossips, to whom Randolph was the
eighth wonder of the modem world.
The stories which Bouldin gathered from W. T. Harvey,
a man who was one ot Randolph's overseers, shortly after
he returned from Russia, and which present Randolph to
us simply as a drunken bully and a coarse vulgarian, all
arise out of incidents, which, if they occurred at all,
« Bouldin, 129.
* Bryan MSS. See also testimony of Judge Leigh in Coalter's Exor. vs.
Randolph's Exor., Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg, Va.
VOL. II — 17
258 John Randolph of Roanoke
occurred when Randolph might just as well have been in
a mad-house as at Roanoke. And yet, referring to Har-
vey, Bouldin actually says : * ' We say we are glad we took
notes from him, because we feel that we must draw Mr.
Randolph as he really was. " '
The most authentic of the stories which impute flagrant
violence to Randolph are those which relate to his neigh-
bor, Robert Carrington, the son of the elder Judge Paul
Carrington. It was said ot him that he was the only per-
son of whom Randolph was ever afraid; but we should
have to know more than we do about the intercourse
between the two men to admit that Randolph feared even
him; though there can be little doubt that Robert Car-
rington was a man of very resolute character. An entry,
imder date of June 8, 1830, in one of Randolph's journals
comprises simply these three words : * ' Robert C*s airs. " *
This was doubtless the prelude to the litigious encoimter
which took place between Randolph and Carrington,
when Randolph filed an action for trespass against Car-
rington in the County Court of Charlotte Cotmty, alleging
that the latter had ploughed up and planted with com a
road used by Randolph, which led along the Staunton
River, and across the Carrington estate from Randolph's
Middle Quarter to his Lower Quarter, and when Carring-
ton filed an action against Randolph in the same court,
alleging that, contrary to an agreement between the two
to maintain one common enclosure, Randolph had allowed
estrays from his property to wander over to Carrington 's
lands and do a great amount of injury. Both of these
actions were brought in the early part of 1832 when Ran-
dolph's derangement was at its worst; and they were both
entered in the latter part of 1832, after he had recovered
his reason, ''dismissed — ^agreed"; which, of course, indi-
cates that the parties had arrived at an amicable settle-
ment with each other.
' Bouldin, 104. « Va, Hist, Soc,
Randolph as a Man 259
Apparently, these two cases were associated with
another legal proceeding in which Robert Carrington
sought to secure an outlet from his estate over a tract of
land adjacent to the Roanoke estate which Randolph had
recently purchased. Under an order of the County Coiut
of Charlotte County, Dennis E. Morgan, Captain Fowlkes,
and W. B. Green were directed to view the road, over
which Carrington desired to pass, and to report to the
Court. When they inspected it, they found pasted up on
a gate-post on it a large sheet of foolscap, giving notice
that all persons, whose names were written on the sheet,
were permitted to use the road as formerly. The paper
was filled from top to bottom with names, male and female,
and the viewers read it over carefully to see if the name of
anyone in the neighborhood, male or female, who had used
the road, or who might probably wish to do so, had been
omitted ; and it was f oimd that the only omission was that
of the name of Robert Carrington. The Commissioners
reported that the land, over which the road ran, was ex-
ceedingly poor and of little value ; that the road had been
in constant use as a mill and neighborhood road for about
50 years, and that its use had been interdicted to Robert
Carrington alone. ^
It is said that, while the viewers were on the ground,
Randolph, true to the policy which has always been pur-
sued by corporations in condemnation cases tmder similar
circumstances, had a quantity of provisions brought to the
scene of the inquisition by his servants. He is also said
to have presented his case against the use of the road by
Carrington in a long speech, in which he abused the whole
Carrington family; a fact which hardly harmonizes with
the idea that he was any more afraid of Robert Carrington
than of anybody else.* Indeed, the argument, to use
Randolph's own figure of speech, "tickled under the tail"
so acutely that Carrington would have attempted a reply
» Bouldin, 29. • Id., 89.
26o John Randolph of Roanoke
had not a cool-headed friend persuaded him that it was
not in speaking that he could hope to contend successfully
with Randolph. Perhaps, it was this advice which im-
pelled him (as it is said) to address a short note to Ran-
dolph forbidding him to use the river road, and telling him
flatly that, if he did so, he would shoot him; a letter which
provoked a reply from Randolph that is said to have
caused Robert Carrington to tell Judge F. N. Watkins of
Prince Edward County that Randolph had sent him four
pages of foolscap, very severe in character and as brilliant
as anjrthing that Randolph had ever written. '
Much of the oral evidence relating to this controversy
should, we have no doubt, be accepted very cautiously;
but, while we are recalling such evidence, we might add
that the strife over the right-of-way which Carrington
sought could not have been as vicious as has been sup-
posed, because it is said that, when Dr. Isaac Read, of
Charlotte County, was moved by a generous impulse to
approach both Carrington and Randolph, in the hope of
composing the quarrel between them, Carrington declared
that, if the difficulty could be honorably adjusted, he
would have no objection ; and Randolph not only said that
he was willing with all his soul, but delivered a lecture on
the magnanimity of forgiving an enemy which Dr. Read
thought equalled old Dr. Hoge in his best days. * (a)
There was undeniably an tmderstrain of ill-feeling in the
intercourse between Randolph and the Carringtons of
Charlotte County generally, which began, doubtless,
with the fling at the integrity of the elder Judge Paul
Carrington in the will of the elder John Randolph; and
this fact, we suspect, had not a little to do with the cen-
sorious feeling towards Randolph which prompted Henry
Carrington, of Ingleside, to say that Randolph did things
which nobody else could do, and made others do things
which they never did before, and of which they repented
« Bouldin, p. 99. ■ Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 261
all the days of their lives, and that on some occasions
Randolph was totally regardless of private rights, and yet
was not held amenable to the laws of the land. * Not only
did the elder Paul Carrington chuckle over the fact that
he was seated between Randolph's Middle Quarter and
Lower Quarter in such a way that he could help himself to
the Randolph lands on either side of him, but, when
Robert Carrington emigrated from Virginia to Arkansas,
Randolph, who had the appetite of an earth-worm for
land, and was very desirous of bujring the Carrington
estate and getting rid of such a dangerous table companion
as the Carrington family, was thwarted in his purpose by
Col. Clem Carrington, another son of the elder Judge Paul
Carrington, who purchased the estate himself.* There
are slight circumstances evidencing the fact that the
regard in which the yotmger Judge Paul Carrington was
held by Randolph was by no means enthusiastic. In the
Diary, is pasted an obituary eulogy of the former which
Randolph had clipped from some newspaper, and, beside
its words of glowing panegyric, are these words written by
Randolph : ' ' Galimatias — Phebus — ^fustian — ^bombast —
bathos.** And Randolph had an even better reason for
harboring a grudge against old Col. Clem Carrington, the
son of the elder Judge Paul Carrington, than the fact that
he was a Federalist, because the Diary contains this memo-
randtmi too: ** Juno, my double-nosed Spanish slut, killed
by Col. Carrington's order. He had her head chopped off.
Her puppy escaped. She had done no mischief and at-
tempted none; she was not even in his enclosures. " The
date of this occurrence seems to have been Oct. 5, 181 1.*
But the Diary and Randolph's briefer journals show
that, between the year 18 10, when Randolph removed
from Bizarre to Roanoke, until the very last years of his
life, he was on neighborly terms, on the whole, with all
the members of the Carrington connection in Charlotte
« Bouldin, 130. « Bryan MSS. « J. R.'s Diary.
262 John Randolph of Roanoke
County ; visiting them and being visited by them, dining
them and being dined by them, and keeping up with,
if he did not cordially share, their family joys and sorrows.
Nothing could be more decisive on this subject than the
statement of John Randolph Bryan : ' * Mr. Randolph had
a difficulty with Robert about the road referred to in the
Reminiscences (Bouldin's), I think about 1832; but he
never felt unfriendly towards either Mr. Robert or old
Col. Clem. ** ' We are told that, even after the road con-
troversy, Randolph voted for Robert Carrington, when he
was a candidate for the House of Delegates and, when
Randolph died, he left behind him a list of his friends
which included the name of Robert Carrington, * with some
favorable comments on his courage, honor, and manliness. *
(a)
According to Jacob Harvey, Randolph said, after his
rub with his Dutch fellow-passenger on The Amity: "God
forgive me for being passionate; but you must know
that I am like a hair trigger and go off at half-cock."^
The judgment was just, as Randolph's judgments about
himself were apt to be. Nor can there be any doubt that
Randolph's temper was not only very choleric, but also
fickle and capricious, and quick to veer from gayety and
good humor to melancholy and moroseness. Harvey
tells us that one day he would be **full of jokes, repartee,
and good humor ; the next abstracted, morose, and incom-
municative." *
From Harvey too we derive a story which is but typical
of the many stories that were circulated during Randolph's
life about his abrupt transitions from one mood to another.
A gentleman who had been introduced to him at a dinner
party at Washington, when he was in fine spirits, found
him so cordial and attractive that the next day, when he
« Letter to Mr. Robertson, Mar. 27, 1878, Bryan MSS.
• Bouldin, 99, 263. » Id., 263.
< The New Mirror , v. i, 332. « Id., v. 2, 70.
Randolph as a Man 263
was walking towards the Capitol and observed Randolph
ahead of him, he quickened his pace until he came up
with him, when he exclaimed, puflBng away for want of
breath :
"Good morning, Mr. Randolph; how do you do.
Sir!"
"Good morning, Sir,** replied Randolph rather stiflBy
and without stopping.
' ' You walk very fast , Sir, * ' said the gentleman, * * I have
had great difficulty in overtaking you. "
"I'll increase the difficulty. Sir," replied Randolph;
and, suiting the action to the word, he soon left his be-
wildered acquaintance behind him. '
A better known story is that of the man who remarked
to Randolph when the latter was in one of his crusty
humors: "I passed by your house this morning, Mr.
Randolph"; and received from him the sttmning reply:
"I hope that you will always continue to do so. "*
Still other stories of the same kind could be cited by us,
but most of them have but slight claims to authenticity.
This cannot be said, however, of cases where his bile is
known to have been stirred by some nettling circumstance
or some real appeal to his disapprobation or contempt.
He had a marked disrelish for any topic of conversation
that was forced upon him.^ He resented, too, any effort
to obtain information from him when the object of the
application was not frankly disclosed. In other words,
to modify his own image a little, what are but pricks with
most of us became pimples with him, owing to his morbid
sensibility to external impressions.
Two well-authenticated stories have come down to our
time of the absolutely withering glance that he could bring
' Tlie New Mirror, v. 2, 70.
* Essay on John Randolph by the Author, Va. University Mag., Oct.,
1879.
» The New Mirror, v. i, 391.
264 John Randolph of Roanoke
to bear upon conceit or shallow pretensions ; or, to use his
own phrase, **a frog at the utmost degree of distention. " "
The first of the two is related by the Rev. John S. Kirk-
patrick in such a vivacious way that we shall tell it
entirely in his own words :
"There lived years ago, in Campbell Coxinty, a man who
bore, and seemed to be proud that he was entitled to bear, the
euphonious and far-resounding name of Achilles D. Johnson.
I had some acquaintance with him, which prepared me to
appreciate what I am about to relate, as others may do. With
no claim to such distinction, that others could see, he yet
aspired to political honors. He was ambitious to get into the
Legislature. He may have dreamed, also, of a seat in Congress,
but, if so, I do not know that he ever told his dream. Being
one day at Raines* Tavern, a noted stage-coach stand in
Cumberland County, on the great dirt road thoroughfare
between Washington City and a large portion of the South, he
learned, much to his joy, that Mr. Randolph was hourly ex-
pected to reach that point, on his way home from Washington ;
traveling in his private carriage from Fredericksburg, whither
it had been sent some days before to meet him. He thought
— our aspiring friend — that, if he should be able, on his return
to Campbell, to report to his neighbors and fellow-countrymen
that he had conversed with Mr. Randolph on national affairs,
and that the latter had told him this, that, and what else
might be, it would considerably swell his importance, in their
eyes, and brighten his prospects for getting into the Legislature.
How to bring himself into communication with Mr. Randolph,
was the problem now to be solved. He sought the mediation
of Mr. Raines, the proprietor, but he declined the service, nor
was anyone of several other gentlemen present willing to
undertake the delicate office. Meanwhile, Mr. Randolph's
carriage halted before the door of the tavern, and tarried long
enough for an order for hot water to be executed; Mr. Ran-
dolph finding it necessary to compound a fresh potation of
the inevitable medicine. It was now or never, with our friend
from Campbell. He advanced, whether boldly or tremblingly,
« J. R. to Dr. Brockenbrough, Feb. 26, 1827, Garl., v. 2, 288.
Randolph as a Man 265
I cannot say, but alone, and unsupported, to the door of the
carriage. 'This is Mr. Randolph, I suppose.* 'Yes, sir, that
is my name.' 'My name is Achilles D. Johnson, of Campbell
County.' 'Howdye do, Mr. Achilles D. Johnson, of Camp-
bell County!' This was a shot that would have discomfited
a man of ordinary courage, but not our hero. It was aimed
too high, and struck the head, an invulnerable part of our
Modem Achilles, as of his illustrious prototype whose name he
bore. He returned fearlessly to the charge. 'You have re-
cently come from Washington, Mr. Randolph.' 'Yes, sir, but
more recently from Fredericksburg.' This time, the bolt,
slanting downward, struck the undipped heel, and Achilles
retired, limping and sulking from the field."'
The other of the two stories was imparted to Powhatan
Bouldin by Mr. Wm. M. Mosely, of Danville, Va., who
was present when the incident, out of which it arose,
occurred. A vain young popinjay, of the Buckingham
County bar, had been elected to the Virginia Assembly,
where he had gained some notoriety by a speech which
he had made in favor of the abolition of slavery, in the
course of which he had held up Randolph as a cruel slave-
holder; a very dangerous thing for anyone to do who
aspired to popular approval in Randolph's District. At
the next election, his constituents declined to re-elect him.
Nothing daimted by this result, he availed himself of the
last occasion on which Randolph ever addressed the
people of Buckingham County to make public amends for
his course in the Legislature and to apologize to Randolph
for the supposed injury that he had done him. He began
by expressing his deep sympathy for the honorable gentle-
man in his very infirm state of health, and the hope that
Randolph's prospective visit to Europe would result in its
restoration. He had always been a devoted admirer of
Mr. Randolph, he said, and felt that it was due to that
distinguished gentleman, as well as to the speaker and his
* Personal Recollections of J. R. of Roanoke, MSS.
266 John Randolph of Roanoke
fellow-citizens of Buckingham, that he shotild embrace the
present opportunity for recanting the speech delivered by
him, when he had been honored with a seat in the State
Legislature, in which he had spoken disparagingly of Mr.
Randolph as a tyrannical master to his slaves. He had
reason to know that his conduct in this respect did not
accord with the sentiments of his constituents ; and he had
to confess that his personal attack upon his distinguished
friend had been made without any personal knowledge
of what sort of master Mr. Randolph actually was. He
trusted that his constituents would forgive him, and he
relied upon the well-known magnanimity of Mr. Ran-
dolph for the forgiveness, too, of a wrong done him, in a
moment of heated debate, upon an exciting subject; the
right side of which he now saw that he had not espoused.
From this point we might as well tell the story in Mr.
Moseley *s very words :
** During the delivery of this ill-timed speech, Mr. Randolph
sat with his head resting upon his hand, seemingly absorbed
in deep thought; and, at its conclusion, he straightened himself
up, and, fixing upon his victim a penetrating gaze, he proceeded
as follows: 'I don't know you, Sir; what might be yotir name?'
The name was given, when Mr. Randolph continued his
interrogatories : 'Whose son are you ? where did you make the
speech you have been talking about? and what did you say
you were trying to speak about ?'
** These questions were all answered in a hurried and confused
manner, evidently showing that the young orator's situation
was becoming unpleasant. Mr. Randolph, after asking a few
more simple questions, the purport of which is not now remem-
bered, concluded as follows : ' I don't think I ever heard of you
or your speech before; and, of course, I have no particular
comment to make upon either. I knew your father, and have
always thought he was a right good sort of a man; and I sup-
pose you are a degenerate son of a noble sire — a thing that is
becoming quite common in this country. I hope my old
constituents, God bless them, will never again be mwrepre-
Randolph as a Man 267
sented in the Legislature, or anywhere else, by such a creature
as you have shown yourself to be.
»»»x
The mercurial nature of Randolph's temper is also
attested by a witness of imquestionable credit, the Rev.
Wm. S. Lacy, who conducted a school at Ararat, in Prince
Edward Cotmty. Speaking of a visit paid by Randolph
to this school, he says :
"On one occasion only do I remember his being gloomy
and morose and crabbed, and then it was bad enough. Shortly
after he arrived at Ararat on that visit, a long spell of cold,
rainy weather set in. The wind blowing from Northeast kept
him in-doors for a week or more. He would read, and write
and loll on the (knich, till he was tired and then become the
most restless and fretful mortal I ever saw. From one o'clock
till bedtime, he would drink rum toddy and whiskey grog
enough to make any other man dead drunk, though he was
never at all fuddled. All we could do was to keep out of his
way and let him alone. As soon, however, as the wind
changed, and the weather cleared off, he was as gay and lively
as ever.*'*
But worse still, Randolph's temper sometimes assumed
the character of settled, chronic animosity. In his boy-
hood, he was passionately (for no other word is strong
enough to convey the idea) attached to his stepfather,
Judge St. George Tucker. *'God bless you my father,
my ever beloved friend. Whilst this heart has motion,
it shall ever feel for you the liveliest affection," was the
way in which he concluded a letter to Judge Tucker when
he was about 23 years old.^ And this was the tone to
which his letters to Judge Tucker were habitually attuned
xmtil the year 1805, when they began to be less effusive.
« Bouldin, 162.
» *' Early Recollections of J. R.,** Sou, Lit, Mess,, June, 1859, pp. 461-466
» Circa, July 18, 1796. Lucas MSS.
268 John Randolph of Roanoke
From that time on, they were increasingly dry and formal,
tmtil the final test of strength between Monroe and his
rival, Madison, of whom Judge Tucker was an adherent,
as Presidential candidates, brought all really cordial
intercourse between Randolph and his stepfather to an
end. In 1803, the reverence and aflPection, cherished by
Randolph for Judge Tucker, were so strong that, when the
character of the latter was slanderously defamed, Ran-
dolph wrote to his stepbrother, Henry St. George Tucker,
in these madcap words :
"Can the character of St. George Tucker be sullied by the
breath of this man? I would not have you fail of what you
owe to that honor which we both equally worship — ^to that
friend whom we equally revere. Such an accusation can
redound only to his honor. It will call forth the indignation of
every honest man in the community, and draw forth a marked
expression of the public confidence in his unsullied integrity.
If the ruffian is to be offered up a victim to filial piety, remem-
ber he is my prey, and, to touch the assassin, is to rob me of my
birthright."'
In 1810-11, Randolph's feelings towards Judge Tucker
had become so acrid that he took legal advice with a view
to bringing suit against him, and was with difficulty dis-
suaded from doing so. * His claim was that Judge Tucker
had contrived "to take to himself" the profits of his and
his brother Richard's estates during their respective
infancy, while Judge Tucker was their guardian, and that,
moreover, his grandfather, Theodorick Bland, had given
his mother certain slaves at the time of her marriage to his
father; that his father had held these slaves until his death ;
and that, at his death, they were inventoried as a part of
his estate, and were considered such during his wife's
widowhood^; but that Judge Tucker had contrived to
« Richm. Enq., Sept. lo, 1833. * Garland, v. 2, 38.
» Deposition of Wm. Leigh in Coalter's Ex. vs. Randolph's Ex., Clk's
Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg, Va.
Randolph as a Man 269
obtain a deed of them from Theodorick Bland and had
sold them and their progeny.
In his letter to the Richmond Enquirer, of Sept. lo,
1833, Judge Henry St. George Tucker, with a temper as
irreproachably loyal to the memory of his half-brother as
to that of his father, affirmed that, shortly after the death
of Richard Randolph, Judge St. George Tucker stated his
accounts between Richard Randolph and John Randolph
respectively and himself, showing a balance in his hands
to the credit of each of them of £200 ; and that he gave his
bonds for these balances to John Randolph and Judith
Randolph, as the executrix of Richard Randolph respect-
ively ; taking a release from each of them ; and that after-
wards he paid the amounts of both bonds to them.
** No hint of dissatisfaction," said Judge Tucker, "appears in
the whole transaction. Indeed, in 1799, Mr. Randolph, being
in Richmond, applied to Mr. Tucker for a loan, which was
made without a moment's hesitation to the amount of $2500.00 ;
and receipt given, to which Randolph, of his own accord,
added a scroll as his seal." (a)
As John Randolph was 23 years of age, when he gave
Judge Tucker the release, and continued for many years
afterwards to be on the most affectionate terms with him,
it would be even idler at this late date, than it would have
been in 1833, to attempt to go back of the release; which
there is no reason to believe was not based upon a per-
fectly full and fair statement of accoimts.
So far as the deed of gift of the slaves to Judge Tucker
was concerned, the facts appear to have been these: In
1758, a statute was passed by the Colonial Assembly of
Virginia making parol gifts of slaves void. Theodorick
Bland evidently availed himself of this statute, after the
death of his daughter, Mrs. John Randolph, to reclaim
control of the slaves, which he had given or lent to her,
and which, if they had been given by a deed of gift, in
270 John Randolph of Roanoke
compliance with the reqtiirements of the Act of 1758,
wotild, tinder the hard rule of law that then existed, have
become the absolute property of her husband, John Ran-
dolph, Sr. Indeed, it may well be that he did not transfer
them by a deed of gift because he wished to reserve the
right to reclaim them at pleasure, (a) The children of Mrs.
Randolph by her first husband were abundantly provided
for, and the object of Theodorick Bland in executing the
deed of gift to Judge Tucker was, doubtless, to make a
provision for Mrs. Randolph and her second set of chil-
dren. Be this as it may, there is no evidence whatever
that Judge Tucker employed any improper means to
obtain the deed, and, moreover, to infer that he did would
be to ignore the excellent reputation that he enjoyed for
integrity during his life and lef c behind him at his death.
The only explanation that Henry St. George Tucker could
offer for Randolph's idea that Judge Tucker had abused
his trust as his guardian was that * * from some other cause,
he had become greatly offended with Mr. Tucker, and
from the influence of these unfriendly feelings labored
under a mental hallucination on this subject ; as it was his
misfortune to have done on some others. **'
The original cause assigned by Garland for Randolph's
alienation from his stepfather is stated in these words :
*'The first cause of this misunderstanding with his step-
father is very characteristic of the man, and illustrates the
feeling of family pride that burned so intensely in his breast.
The subject of conversation was the passing of the Banister
estate from an infant of the family to a brother of the half-
blood of the Shippen family. Mr. Randolph said that occur-
rence gave rise to the alteration of the law of descents, and
placed it on its present footing; he also expressed in strong
terms his disapprobation of the justice or policy of such a law.
Judge Tucker replied : 'Why, Jack, you ought not to be against
that law; for you know, if you were to die without issue, you
' Richm, Enq.f Sept. 10, 1833.
Randolph as a Man 271
would wish yotir half-brothers to have your estate.' '1*11 be
damned, Sir, if I do know it/ said Randolph in great excite-
ment. And from that day ceased with his good and venerable
stepfather all friendly intercourse. This occasion gave rise
to many cruel and tmjust suspicions. Once brought to suspect
a selfish motive in him he had so much venerated, he began
to look back with a jealous eye on all his past transactions,
and 'trifles light as air' became confiirmations strong as Holy
Writ.'"
In our judgment, as we have intimated, it is much more
likely that it was the differences engendered by the Presi-
dential struggle between Madison and Monroe, in which
Randolph's heart was so zealously enlisted, that first
turned Randolph against Judge Tucker. In the winter
of 1813-14, when he spent some months in Richmond, an
effort was made by the common friends of his stepfather
and himself to bring about a reconciliation between them ;
but the effort failed. In a letter to the widow of Judge
St. George Tucker, written after Randolph's death, Mrs.
John Randolph Bryan recalled the fact that Judge St.
George Tucker and Randolph had met at Bush Hill near
Richmond about 1816 or 1817 and that Randolph had
refused to take Judge Tucker's hand ; Judge Tucker saying
in an agitated voice, like the good, affectionate man that
he was : * * Oh, Jack ! I never thought that one of my chil-
dren would refuse my hand. " *
A few years later, Randolph inserted in the will which
he executed in 1821 these extraordinary words:
"I have not included my mother's descendants in my will
because her husband, besides the whole profits of my late
father's estate, during the minority of my brother and myself,
has contrived to get to himself the slaves given by my grand-
father. Bland, as her marriage portion when my father married
her; which slaves were inventoried at my father's death as
part of his estate, and were as much his as any that he had.
« Garland, v. 2, 38. " Bryan MSS.
272 John Randolph of Rocinoke
1
One-half of them, now scattered from Maryland to Mississippi,
were entitled to freedom at my brother Richard's death, as
the other would have been at mine."*
This was but the breaking of a boil which had long been
coming to a head.
In the Diary, Randolph preserved a list of all the
negroes to whom he thought that the estate of his father
was entitled ; and along with their names he also entered
in the Diary several fixtures which he deemed Judge
Tucker to have unwarrantably removed from Matoax to
Williamsburg after the death of his first wife.
In a list which he kept in the Diary of his books, that
were destroyed with the mansion house at Bizarre on
Sunday, March 21, 18 13, is this title: ''Tucker's Black-
stone, 4 vols, from the editor, *' with these splenetic words,
evidently appended to it at a date later than its insertion :
•'With his profits."
Naturally enough, the reflections in the will of 182 1 on
Judge Tucker were warmly resented by the Tuckers ; but
of this we shall speak in a later connection.
Never, however, was the gall in Randolph's nature so
stirred as by the feelings which he came to cherish towards
Nancy Randolph, after the truth about the tragic incident
at Glenlyvar had been brought to his knowledge by a
confession which she made to him some years after it had
occurred. Speaking of his brother Richard, in a letter
written from Paris on July 24, 1824, he said:
'* His sudden and untimely death threw upon my care, help-
less as I was, his family whom I tenderly and passionately
loved; and with whom I might be now living at Bizarre if the
reunion of his widow with the of her husband had not
driven me to Roanoke; where, but for my brother's entreaty
and forlorn and friendless condition, I should have remained;
and where I should have obtained a release from my bondage
> Bouldin, 204.
Randolph as a Man 273
more than 20 years ago. Then I might have enjoyed my
present opportunities; but time misspent and faculties mis-
employed and senses, jaded by labor or impaired by excess,
cannot be recalled any more than that freshness of the heart
before it has become aware of the deceits of others and of its
own.'"
But before these bitter, mournful, musical words were
written, there had been an interchange of letters between
Randolph and Nancy Randolph that can be compared
only to the deadly grapple in midair, with beak and claw,
of two fierce falcons.
On his way from Harvard, where he was a student, to
Virginia, in the year 18 14, Tudor Randolph was taken
with a hemorrhage at Morrisania, in the State of New
York, the home of Gouvemeur Morris, to whom Nancy
Randolph had been recently married, (a) When knowl-
edge of this fact reached Judith Randolph, who had in the
meantime become reconciled to her sister after a period of
estrangement, she went on to Morrisania herself to look
after Tudor; and was followed by Randolph. He reached
New York on Thursday, Oct. 20, and Morrisania on Sat-
urday, Oct. 22, and the next day he returned to New
York.^ He seems, therefore, to have spent but a single
night at Morrisania before he left New York on his return
to Virginia. While writhing under the physical effects
of the accident, which we have already mentioned as
befalling him there, and, with a mind poisoned by asper-
sions on the conduct of Mrs. Morris, which he had heard
from an enemy or enemies of hers after his return to New
York, he wrote to her the following letter; and evoked
from her the following reply, ^ which, however, was never
received by Randolph. ^
« Garland, v. 2, 224. » J. R.'s Diary,
» N. Y. Pub. Libr. MSS., Va. Hist. Soc. MSS
< Letter from J. R. to Wm. B. Giles, Clay Hill, Mar. 12, 1815, N. Y.
Pub. Libr.
VOL. II — 18
274 John Randolph of Roanoke
Greenwich St., Oct. 31, 1814.
*' Madam:
When, at my departure from Morrisania, in your sister's
presence, I bade you remember the past, I was not apprised of
the whole extent of your guilty machinations. I had never-
theless seen and heard enough in the course of my short visit
to satisfy me that your own dear experience had availed
nothing toward the amendment of yotu* life. My object was
to let you know that the eye of man as well as of that God, of
whom you seek not, was upon you — to impress upon your mind
some of your duty towards your husband, and, if possible, to
rouse some dormant spark of virtue, if haply any such should
sltmiber in your bosom. The conscience of the most hardened
criminal has, by a sudden stroke, been alarmed into repentance
and contrition. Yours, I perceive, is not made of penetrable
stuff. Unhappy woman, why will you tempt the forbearance
of that Maker who has, perhaps, permitted you to run your
course of vice and sin that you might feel it to be a life of
wretchedness, alarm and suspicion ? You now live in the daily
and nightly dread of discovery. Detection itself can hardly be
worse. Some of the proofs of your guilt, (you know to which
of them I allude) ; those which in despair you sent me through
Dr. Meade on your leaving Virginia; those proofs, I say, had
not been produced against you had you not falsely used my
name in imposing upon the generous man to whose arms you
have brought pollution! to whom next to my unfortunate
brother you were most indebted, and whom next to him you
have most deeply injured. You told Mr. Morris that I had
offered you marriage subsequent to your arraignment for the
most horrible of crimes, when you were conscious that I never
at any time made such proposals. You have, therefore,
released me from any implied obligation, (with me it would
have been sacred; notwithstanding you laid no injunction of
the sort upon me, provided you had respected my name and
decently discharged your duties to your husband) to withhold
the papers from the inspection of all except my own family.
'*I laid them before Tudor soon after they came into my
hands with the whole story of his father's wrongs and your
crime. But to return:
Randolph as a Man 275
"You represented to Mr. Morris that I had oflEered you
marriage. Your inveterate disregard of truth has been too
well known to me for many years to cause any surprise on my
part at this or any other falsehood that you may coin to serve a
turn. In like manner, you instigated Mr. Morris against the
Chief Justice whom you knew to have been misled with respect
to the transactions at R. Harrisons, and who knew no more
of your general or subsequent life than the Archbishop of
Canterbury. Cunning and guilt are no match for wisdom
and truth, yet you persevere in your wicked course. Your
apprehensions for the life of your child first flashed conviction
on my mind that your hands had deprived of life that of which
you were delivered in October, 1792, at R. Harrison's. The
child, to interest his feelings in its behalf, you told my brother
Richard (when you entrusted to him the secret of your preg-
nancy and implored him to hide your shame) was begotten
by my brother, Theodorick, who died at Bizarre of a long
decline the preceding February. You knew long before his
death (nearly a year) he was reduced to a mere skeleton; that
he was unable to walk; and that his bones had worn through
his skin. Such was the inviting object whose bed (agreeably
to your own account) you sought, and with whom, to use your
own paraphrase, you played 'Alonzo and Cora,' and, to screen
the character of such a creature, was the life and fame of this
most gallant of men put in jeopardy. He passed his word,
and the pledge was redeemed at the hazard of all that man
can hold dear. Domestic peace, reputation and life, all
suffered but the last. His hands received the burthen, bloody
from the womb, and already lifeless. Who stifled its cries,
God only knows and you. His hands consigned it to an un-
coffined grave. To the prudence of R. Harrison, who dis-
qualified himself from giving testimony by refraining from a
search under the pile of shingles, some of which were marked
with blood — to this cautious conduct it is owing that my
brother Richard did not perish on the same gibbet by your
side, and that the foul stain of incest and murder is not indeli-
bly stamped on his memory and associated with the idea of his
offspring. Your alleged reason for not declaring the truth
(fear of your brothers) does not hold against a disclosure to his
276 John Randolph of Roanoke
wife, your sister, to whom he was not allowed to impart the
secret.
** But her own observation supplied all defect of positive
infonnation and, had you been first proceeded against at law,
your sister being a competent witness, you must have been
convicted, and the conviction of her husband would have
followed as a necessary consequence; for who would have
believed your sister to have been sincere in her declaration that
she suspected no criminal intercourse between her husband
and yourself?
** When, some years ago, I imparted to her the facts (she had
a right to know them), she expressed no surprise but only said,
she was always satisfied in her own mind that it was so. My
brother died suddenly in June, 1790, only three years after his
trial. I was from home. Tudor, because he believes you
capable of anything, imparted to me the morning I left Morris-
ania his misgivings that you had been the perpetrator of that
act, and, when I found your mind running upon poisonings and
murders, I too had my former suspicions strengthened. If I
am wrong, I ask forgiveness of God and even of you. A dose
of medicine was the avowed cause of his death. Mrs. Dudley,
to whom my brother had offered an asyltmi in his house, who
descended from our mother's sister, you drove away. Your
quarrels with your own sister, before fierce and angry, now
knew no remission. You tried to force her to turn you out of
doors that you might have some plausible reason to assign
for quitting Bizarre. Bvtt, after what my poor brother had
been made to suffer, in mind, body and estate, after her own
suffering as wife and widow from your machinations, it was not
worth while to try to save anjrthing from the wreck of her
happiness, and she endured you as well as she could, and you
poured on. But your intimacy with one of the slaves, your
'dear Billy Ellis,' thus you commenced your epistles to this
Othello !, attracted notice. You could stay no longer at Biz-
arre, you abandoned it under the plea of ill usage and, after
various shiftings of your quarters, you threw yourself on the
htunanity of Capt. and Mrs. Murray (never appealed to in
vain), and here you made a bold stroke for a husband — Dr.
Meade. Foiled in this game, your advances became so
Randolph as a Man 277
immodest you had to leave Grovebrook. You, afterwards,
took lodgings at Prior's (a public garden), whither I sent by
your sister's request, and in her name $ioo. You returned
them by the bearer, Tudor, then a schoolboy, because sent in
her name which you covered with obloquy. But to S. G.
Tucker, Esq., you represented that I had sent the money,
suppressing your sister's name, and he asked me if I was not
going to see 'poor Nancy* ? You sent this, a direct message,
and I went. You were at that time fastidiously neat, and so
was the apartment. I now see why the bank note was returned
— but the bait did not take — I left the apartment and never
beheld you more until in Washington as the wife of Mr.
Morris. Your subsequent association with the players — ^your
decline into a very draJ) — I was informed of by a friend in Rich-
mond. You left Virginia — whether made a condition of your
or not, I know not, but the Grantor would not, as I heard,
suffer you to associate with his wife. From Rhode Island, you
wrote to me, begging for money. I did not answer your letter.
Mr. Sturgis, of Connecticut, with whom you had formed an
acquaintance, and with whom you corresponded! often
brought me messages from you. He knows how coolly they
were received. When Mr. Morris brought you to Washington,
he knew that I held aloof from you. At his instance, who
asked me if I intended to mortify his wife by not visiting her, I
went. I repeated my visit to ascertain whether change of
circumstances had made any change in your conduct. I was
led to hope you had seen your errors and was smoothing his
passage through life. A knowledge that he held the staff in
his own hands and a mistaken idea of his character (for I
had not done justice to the kindness of his nature) fortified
this hope. Let me say that, when I heard of your living with
Mr. Morris as his housekeeper, I was glad of it as a means of
keeping you from worse company and courses. Considering
him as a perfect man of the world, who, in courts and cities
at home and abroad, had in vain been assailed by female
blandishments, the idea of his marrying you never entered my
head. Another connection did. My first intimation of the
marriage was its announcement in the newspapers. I then
thought, Mr. Morris being a travelled man, might have formed
278 John Randolph of Roanoke
his taste on a foreign model. Silence was my only course.
Chance has again thrown you under my eye. What do I see?
A vampire that, after sucking the best blood of my race, has
flitted off to the North, and struck her harpy fangs into an
infirm old man. To what condition of being have you re-
duced him ? Have you made him a prisoner in his own house
that there may be no witness of your lewd amours, or have you
driven away his friends and old domestics that there may be
no witnesses of his death? Or do you mean to force him to
Europe where he will be more at your mercy, and, dropping
the boy on the highway, rid yourself of all incumbrances at
once? * Uncle,' said Tudor, *if ever Mr. Morris' eyes are
opened, it will be through this child whom, with all her grim-
aces in her husband's presence, 'tis easy to see she cares nothing
for except as an instrument of power. How shocking she
looks! I have not met her eyes three times since I have been
in the house. My first impression of her character, as far
back as I can remember, is that she was an unchaste woman.
My brother knew her even better than I. She cotdd never do
anything with him.'
* * I have done. Before this reaches your eye, it will have been
perused by him, to whom, next to my brother, you are most
deeply indebted, and whom, next to him, you have most
deeply wronged. If he be not both blind and deaf, he must
sooner or later unmask you unless he too die of cramps in his
stomach. You understand me. If I were persuaded that his
life is safe in your custody, I might forbear from making this
communication to him. Repent before it is too late. May I
hear of that repentance and never see you more.
**JoHN Randolph of Roanoke."
" MoRRiSANiA, January i6th, 1815.
"Sir:
** My husband yesterday conmiunicated to me for the first
time your letter of the last of October, together with that
which accompanied it, directed to him.
** In your letter to my husband, you say, *I wish I could
withhold the blow but I must in your case do what under a
change of circumstances I would have you do unto me.' This
Randolph as a Man 279
Sir, seems fair and friendly. It seems, Sir, as if you wished to
apprize Mr. Morris and him only of circumstances important
to his happiness and honor, though fatal to my reputation,
leaving it in his power to cover them in oblivion or display
them to the world as the means of freeing him from a monster
tmfit to live. But this was mere seeming. Your real object
was widely different. Under the pretext of consulting Com,
Decatur and Mr. Bleecker, you communicated your slanders
to them, and then to Mr. Ogden. You afterwards displayed
them to Mr. Wilkins, who, having heard them spoken of in the
city, called on you to know on what foimdation they stood.
How many others you may have consulted, to how many
others you may have published your malicious tale, I know not,
but I venture to ask whether this be conduct under a change
of drctunstances you would have others pursue towards you.*^
You have professed a sense of gratitude for obligations you
suppose my husband to have laid you under. Was the
attempt to blacken my character and destroy his peace of mind
a fair return? There are many other questions which will
occur to candid minds on the perusal of your letter. For
instance, did you believe these slanders? If you did, why did
you permit your nephew to be fed from my boimty and nursed
by my care during nearly three months? Cotdd you suppose
him safe in the power of a wretch who had murdered his
father? Does it consist with the dignified pride of family you
affect to have him, whom you announce as your heir, and
destined to support your name, dependent on the charity of a
negro's concubine? You say I confine my husband a prisoner
in his house that there may be no witnesses of my lewd amours,
and have driven away his friends and old domestics that there
may be no witnesses of his death. If I wished to indulge in
amours, the natural course would be to mingle in the pleasures
and amusements of the city, or at least to induce my husband
to go abroad and leave me a clear stage for such misdeeds.
Was it with a view to multiply witnesses of my ill conduct
that you published tales tending as far as they are believed to
make his house a solitude ? It cannot escape your observation
that you take on you to assert things which, had they existed,
you could not know. Thus you say your brother * passed his
28o John Randolph of Roanoke
word and the pledge was redeemed at the hazard of all that a
man can hold dear' ! Pray, Sir, admitting (tho it is not true)
that I had exacted from your brother a promise of secrecy, how
could you have known it unless he betrayed it? and, if he
betrayed it, how was the pledge redeemed? Again you say
that *I instigated Mr. Morris to write to the Chief Justice
whom I knew to have been misled.' Had the instigation
been a fact, how could you come by the knowledge of it ? Like
many other things in your letter, it happens to be a downright
falsehood, and is, therefore, a just standard for him to estimate
the rest of your assertions. Permit me to observe also that it
is an additional proof of your intention to spread your slander
abroad!; for, had you meant to conmitmicate information to
Mr. Morris, you would not have hazarded such a charge.
People of proper feelings require that the evidence of accusa-
tion be strong in proportion as the guilt is enormous; but
those, who feel themselves capable of conmiitting the blackest
crimes, will readily suspect others, and condemn without proof
on a mere hearsay, on the suggestion of a disturbed fancy or
instigations of a malevolent heart. Those who possess a clear
conscience and sound mind, will look through your letter for
some prooj of my guilt. They will look in vain. They will
find, indeed, that you have thought proper to found suspicions
on suspicions of your nephew, and, with no better evidence,
you have the insolence to impute crime at which nature revolts.
You will perhaps say that you mention a piece of evidence in
your possession — a letter which I wrote on leaving Virginia.
As far as that goes, it must be admitted, but permit me to tell
you that the very mention of it destroys your credibility with
honorable minds. To say, as you do, that I laid no injunction
of secrecy will strike such minds as a pitiful evasion. If you
had the feelings of a man of honor, you would have known that
there are things the communication of which involves that
injunction. You have heard of principle and pretend to
justify the breach of confidence by my want of respect for
your name. But you acknowledge that you commtmicated
the information to my sister and her son Tudor (this a boy of
eleven years old) shortly after you became possessed of it.
Thus was my reputation, as far as it lay in yotu* power, com-
Randolph as a Man 281
mitted to the discretion of a woman and a child many years
before the imputed want of respect for your name ! Formerly
Jack Randolph — ^now, 'John Randolph of Roanoke.' It was
then a want of respect to the great John Randolph of Roanoke
to say he had done the honor of offering his hand to his poor
cousin Nancy. I shall take more notice of this in its proper
place, and only add here that among the respectable people of
Virginia the affectation of greatness must cover you with
ridicule.
** But, to return to this breach of confidence, without which
you have not the shadow of evidence to support your slanders.
While on the chapter of self-contradictions, (which, with all
due respect to 'John Randolph of Roanoke,' make up the
history of his life) I must notice a piece of evidence not indeed
contained in your letter, but written by your hand. I have
already hinted at the indelicacy of leaving your nephew so long
in my care with the view of meeting observations which no
person can fail to make on a conduct so extraordinary in itself
and inconsistent with your charges against me. You pretend
to have discovered, all at once in this house, the confirmation
of your suspicions, but surely the suspicion was sufficient to
prevent a person having a pretense to delicacy from subject-
ing himself to such obligations. One word, however, as to this
sudden discovery made by your great sagacity. Recollect,
Sir, when you rose from table to leave Morrisania, you put in
my husband's hand a note to my sister expressing your willing-
ness that she and her son should pass the winter in his house.
Surely, the discovery must have been made at that time, if at
all. You will recollect, too, some other marks of confidence
and affection, let me add of respect also, which I forbear to
mention because you would no doubt deny them, and it wotdd
be invidious to ask the testimony of those who were present.
One act, however, must not be unnoticed. It speaks too plain
a language to be misunderstood, and was too notorious to be
denied. When you entered this house, and when you left it,
you took me in your arms, you pressed me to your bosom, you
impressed upon my lips a kiss which I received as a token of
friendship from a near relation. Did you then believe that you
held in your arms, that you pressed to your bosom, that you
282 John Randolph of Roanoke
kissed the lips of, a common prostitute, the murderess of her
own child and of your brother ? Go, tell this to the world that
scorn may be at no loss for an object. If you did not believe it,
make out a certificate that *John Randolph of Roanoke* is a
base calumniator. But no, you may spare yourself this
trouble. It is already written. It lies before me, and I
proceed to notice what it contains in a more particular manner.
** And first, Sir, as to the fact communicated shortly before
I left Virginia. That your brother Theodoric paid his ad-
dresses to me, you knew and attempted to supplant him by
calumny. Be pleased to remember that, in my sister Mary's
house, (a) you led me to the portico, and, leaning against one of
the pillars, expressed your surprise at having heard from your
brother Richard that I was engaged to marry his brother,
Theodoric. That you hoped it was not true, for he was tm-
worthy of me. To establish this opinion, you made many
assertions derogatory to his reputation — some of which I knew
to be false. Recollect that, afterwards, on one of those
occasions (not infrequent), when your violence of temper had
led you into an unpleasant situation, you, in a letter to your
brother, Richard, declared you were unconscious of ever having
done anything in all your life which could offend me, unless
it was that conversation, excusing it as an act of heroism, like
the sacrifice of his own son by Brutus, for which I ought to
applaud you. The defamation of your brother whom I loved,
your stormy passions, your mean selfishness, your wretched
appearance, rendered your attentions disagreeable. Your
brother, Richard, a model of truth and honor, knew how much
I was annoyed by them. He knew of the letters with which
you pestered me from Philadelphia till one of them was re-
turned in a blank cover, when I was absent from home. By
whom it was done, I knew not ; for I never considered it of im-
portance enough to inquire. It was your troublesome atten-
tions which induced Richard to inform you of my engagement.
At that time, my father had other views. Your property, as well
as that of your brothers, was hampered by a British debt. My
father, therefore, preferred for my husband a person of clear
and considerable estate. The sentiment of my heart did not
accord with his intentions. Under these circumstances, I was
Randolph as a Man 283
left at Bizarre, a girl, not seventeen, with the man she loved.
I was betrothed to him, and considered him as my husband in
the presence of that God whose name you presume to invoke
on occasions the most trivial and for purposes the most male-
volent. We should have been married, if Death had not
snatched him away a few days after the scene which began the
history of my sorrows. Your brother, Richard, knew every cir-
cumstance, but you are mistaken in supposing I exacted from
him a promise of secrecy. He was a man of honor. Neither
the foul imputations against us both, circulated by that kind
of friendship which you have shown to my husband, nor the
awful scene, to which he was afterwards called as an ac-
complice in the horrible crime, with which you attempt to
blacken his memory, could induce him to betray the sister of
his wife, the wife of his brother; I repeat it. Sir, the crime
with which you now attempt to blacken his memory. You
say that, to screen the character of such a creature as I am,
the life and the fame of that most generous and gallant of men
was put in jeopardy. His life alas ! is now beyond the reach
of your malice, but his fame, which should be dear to
a brother's heart, is stabbed by the hand of his brother. You
not only charge me with the heinous crime of infanticide,
placing him in the condition of an accomplice, but you proceed
to say that *had it not been for the prudence of Mr. Harrison,
or the mismanagement of not putting me first on my trial, we
should both have swung on the same gibbet and the foul stain
of incest and murder been stamped on his memory and associ-
ated with the idea of his offspring.' This, Sir, is the language
you presume to write and address to me, enclosed in a cover
to my husband for his inspection, after having been already
communicated to other people. I will, for a moment, put
myself out of question, and suppose the charge to be true.
What must be the indignation of a feeling heart to behold a
wretch rake up the ashes of his deceased brother to blast his
fame? Who is there of nerve so strong as not to shudder at
your savage regret that we did not swing on the same gibbet?
I well remember, and you cannot have forgotten that, when
sitting at the hospitable home of your venerable father-in-law,
you threw a knife at that brother's head, and, if passion had
284 John Randolph of Roanoke
not diverted the aim, he would much earlier have been con-
signed to the grave, and you much earlier have met the doom
which awaits your murderous disposition. It was, indeed,
hoped that age and reflection had subdued your native bar-
barity. But, setting aside the evidence which your letter
contains, the earnestness with which you disclosed in the
presence of Col. Morris and his brother the Commodore [your
desire ?] to shoot a British soldier, to bear off his scalp and hang
it up as an ornament in yotu* house at Roanoke, shows that you
have still the heart of a savage. I ask not of you but of a can-
did world whether a man like you is worthy of belief. On the
melancholy occasion you have thought proper to bring forward
there was the strictest examination. Neither your brother or
myself had done anything to excite enmity, yet we were
subjected to an unpitying persecution. The severest scrutiny
took place; you know it. He was acquitted to the joy of
ntunerous spectators, expressed in shouts of exultation. This,
Sir, passed in a remote county of Virginia more than twenty
years ago. You have revived the slanderous tale in the
most populous city in the United States. For what? To
repay my kindness to your nephew by tearing me from the
arms of my husband and blasting the prospects of my child!
Poor innocent babe, now playing at my feet, unconscious of his
mother's wrongs. But it seems that on my apprehensions for
his life first flashed convictions on your mind that my own
hand had deprived in October, 1792, that of which I was
delivered. You ought to have said, the last of September.
** You must, Mr. Randolph, have a most extraordinary kind
of apprehension; for one child can induce you to believe in the
destruction of another. But, waiving this absurdity, you
acknowledge that every fact, which had come to your knowl-
edge, every circumstance you had either heard or dreamt of in
the long period of more than twenty years, had never imparted
to you a belief, which nevertheless you expect to imprint on
the minds of others. You thus pay to the rest of mankind the
wretched compliment of supposing them more ready to believe
the greatest crimes than 'John Randolph of Roanoke. ' Doubt-
less there may be some, who are worthy of this odious dis-
tinction; I hope not many. I hope too that, in justice to the
Randolph as a Mail 285
more rational part of the community, you will wait (before
you require their faith) until some such flash shall have
enlightened their minds. Mark here, for your future govern-
ment, the absurdity to which falsehood and maUce inevitably
lead a calunmiator. They have driven you, while you en-
deavored to palliate inconsistency of conduct, into palpable self
contradiction. Sensible as you must be that no respectable
person can overlook the baseness of leaving your nephew so
long, or even permitting him to come, imder the roof of the
wretch you describe me to be, you are compelled to acknowledge
that you did not believe in the enormities you charge, until
yourself had paid a visit to Morrisania. Thus you not only
invalidate every thing like evidence to support your crimina-
tions but foimd them on circumstances which produce an
effect (if they operate at all) directly opposite to that for which
they are cited.
** You have. Sir, on this subject presumed to use my sister's
name. Permit me to tell you, I do not believe one word of
what you say. Were it true, it is wholly immaterial. But
that it is not true, I have perfect conviction.
** The assertion rests only on your testimony, the weight and
value of which has been already examined. The contradiction
is contained in her last letter to me, dated Dec. 17th, of which
I enclose a copy. You will observe she cautions me against
believing anything inconsistent with her gratitude for my
kindness, and assures me that, altho* prevented from spending
the winter with us, she is proud of the honor done her by the
invitation. With this letter before me, I should feel it an
insult to her as well as an indignity to myself if I made any
observations on your conduct at Bizarre. No one can think so
meanly of a woman who moves in the sphere of a lady as to
suppose she could be proud of the honor of being invited to
spend a winter with the concubine of one of her slaves. Never-
theless, tho I disdain an answer to such imputations, I am
determined they shall appear in the neighborhood under your
hand; so that your character may be fully known and your
signature forever hereafter be not only what it has hitherto
been, the appendage of vainglorious boasting, but the designa-
tion of majicious baseness. You say I drove Mrs. Dudley
286 John Randolph of Roanoke
from my sister's house. A falsehood more absurd could hardly
have been invented. She left the house the day before your
brother was buried. I shall not enter into a detail of the
circumstances, but this assertion also shall be communicated
to the neighbourhood. It is well that your former constituents
should know the creature in whom they put their trust. Vir-
ginians, in general, whatever may be their defects, have a high
sense of honor. You speak with affected sensibility of my
sister's domestic bliss, and you assume an air of indignation
at the violence of my temper. Be pleased to recollect that,
returning from a morning ride with your brother, you told me
you found it would not do to interfere between man and wife;
that you had recommended to him a journey to Connecticut to
obtain a divorce; that he made no reply, nor spoke a single
word afterwards. Recollect, too, how often, and before how
many persons, and in how many ways, you have declared your
detestation of her conduct as a wife and her angry passions.
One form of expression occurs which is remarkable: 'I have
heard,' said you, 'that Mrs. Randolph was handsome, and,
perhaps, had I ever seen her in a good humor, I might have
thought so; but her features are so distorted by constant
wrath that she has to me the air of a fury.* And now, as to my
disposition and conduct, be pleased not to forget (for people of
a certain sort should have good memories) that, during full
five years after your brother's death, and how much longer, I
know not, I was the constant theme of your praise and, tho
you wearied everyone else, you seemed on that subject to be
yourself indefatigable. I should not say these things, if they
rested merely on my own knowledge, for you would not hesi-
tate to deny them, and I should be very sorry that my credi-
bility were placed on the same level with yours. You have
addressed me as a notorious liar, to which I make no other
answer than that the answer, like your other charges, shall be
communicated to those who know us both. You will easily
anticipate their decision. In the meantime, it may not be
amiss to refresh your memory with one sample of your veracity.
There are many who remember, while your slaves were imder
mortgage for the British debt, your philanthropic assertion
that you would make them free and provide tutors for them.
Randolph as a Man 287
With this project, you wearied all who would listen. When,
by the sale of some of them, a part of the debt was discharged,
and an agreement made to pay the rest by installments, you
changed your mind. This was not inexcusable, but when you
set up for representation in Congress, and the plan to liberate
your slaves was objected to in your District, you published, to
the astonishment of numbers, who had heard you descant on
your liberal intentions, that you never had any such idea.
Thus your first step in public life was marked with falsehood.
On entering the door of Congress, you became an outrageous
patriot. Nothing in the French Revolution was too immoral
or too impious for your taste and applause. Washington and
Britain were the objects of your obloquy. This patriotic
fever lasted till the conclusion of Mr. Chase's trial, from which
you returned, complaining of the fatigue of your public labors,
but elated with the prospect of a foreign mission. As usual,
you rode your new Hobby to the annoyance of all who like me
were obliged to listen. Your expected voyage enchanted you
so much that you could not help talking of it even to your deaf
nephew: ^Soon, my boy, we shall be sailing over the Atlantic,*
But, all at once, you became silent and seemed in deep melan-
choly. It appeared soon after that Mr. Jefferson and Mr.
Madison, knowing your character, had prudently declined
a compliance with your wishes. A new scene now opened;
you became a patriot, double distilled, and founded your
claim to the confidence of new friends on the breach of that
which had been reposed by your old ones. I know not what
others may think as to your treacherous disclosure of Mr.
Madison's declaration, *that the French want money and must
have it,' but it is no slight evidence of his correct conduct, in
general, that you had nothing else to betray.
** With the same insensibility to shame, which marks your
allegations, you have denied the fact of turning me out of
doors. This also shall be made known in the neighbourhood
where it must be well remembered. I take the liberty again to
refresh your memory. Shortly after your nephew (whom I
had nursed several weeks in a dangerous illness at the hazard
of my life) had left home to take the benefit of a change of air,
you came into the room one evening, after you had been a long
288 John Randolph of Roanoke
time in yotir chamber with my sister, and said, addressing
yourself to me, 'Nancy, when do you leave this house? The
sooner the better for you take as many liberties as if you were
in a tavern.* On this occasion, as on others, my course was
silent submission. I was poor, I was dependent. I knew the
house was kept in part at your expense. I could not therefore
appeal to my sister. I replied with the humility, suitable to
my forlorn condition, *I will go as soon as I can.* You stalked
haughtily about the room, and poor, unprotected 'Nancy' re-
tired to seek the relief of tears. Every assertion of yours
respecting my visit to Grovebrook is false. Mr. Murray
cannot but acknowledge that I went there with Judge Johnston
in his carriage, on my way to Hanover, after repeated invita-
tions from his family, conveyed in letters from his daughters;
that I left there in the chariot of my friend, Mr. Swan; that
they pressed me not only to prolong my stay but to repeat my
visit. Of this, Mr. Curd, a gentleman sent by Mr. Swan to
escort me, was a witness.
** You are tmfortunate in what passed two years after when
I saw you at Richmond, but, before I refresh your memory on
this subject, I must notice another malicious falsehood respect-
ing my residence, while in Richmond. You say I took lodg-
ings at Prior's, a public garden. It is true Mr. Prior owned a
large lot in Richmond, and that there was a public building on
it, in which public balls and entertainments were given, and
this lot a public garden, but it is equally true that Mr. Prior's
dwelling and the enclosure round it were wholly distinct from
that garden. In that house, I lodged. My chamber was
directly over Mrs. Prior's, a lady of as good birth as Mr. John
Randolph and of far more correct principles. All this, Sir, you
perfectly well know. From that chamber, I wrote you a note,
complaining that your nephew, then a school boy in Richmond,
was not permitted to see me. You sent [it] back, after writing
on the same sheet, *I return your note that you may compare it
with my answer, and ask yourself, if you are not unjust to one
who through life has been your friend.' This, with the recital
of your professions of regard, made to my friend Lucy Ran-
dolph and her husband and her husband's brother Ryland, led
me to suppose you had, in the last scene at Bizarre, acted only
Randolph as a Man 289
as my sister's agent. I, therefore, wrote to you, remonstrating
against the reason you assigned for turning me out of doors,
which you yourself knew to be unfounded, for you had often
observed that I was 'Epicene, the Silent Woman.* You knew
that I was continually occupied at my needle or other work for
the house, obe5ang, to the best of my knowledge, the orders I
received, differing from any other servant only in this: I re-
ceived no wages, but was permitted to sit at table, where I
did not presume to enter into conversation or taste of wine, and
very seldom of tea or coffee. I gave my letter open into the
hands of Ryland Randolph, to be put by him into your hands.
I pause here. Sir, to ask, whether, on the receipt of this letter,
you pretended to deny having turned me out of doors? You
dare not say so. You shortly after paid me a visit, the only
one during your stay. You sat on my bedstead, I cannot say
my bed, for I had none, I was too poor. When weary, my
limbs were rested on a blanket, spread over the sacking. Your
visit was long, and I never saw you from that day until we met
in Washington. Some days after, you sent your nephew to
offer me $ioo on the part of his mother. I supposed this to be
a turn of delicacy, for, had you been the bearer of money from
her, you would have delivered it, when you were in my cham-
ber, and given me every needful assurance of the quarter from
which it came. But, let it have come from whom it might, my
feelings were too indignant to receive a boon at the hands of
those by whom I had been so grievously wounded. I readily
conceive. Sir, that this must have appeared to you inexplicable,
for it must be very difficult for you to conceive how a person in
my condition would refuse money from any quarter. It is true
that, afterwards, when in Newport, suffering from want, and
borne down by a severe ague and fever, I was so far humbled
as to request not the gift (I would sooner have perished) but
the loan of half that sum. My petition struck on a cold heart
that emitted no sound. You did not deign to reply. You
even made a boast of your silence. I was then so far off my
groans could not be heard in Virginia. You no longer appre-
hended the [reproaches] which prompted your ostentatious
offer at Richmond. Yes, Sir, you were silent. You then
possessed the letter on which you grounded your calumnies.
VOL. II — 19
290 John Randolph of Roanoke
You supposed me so much in your power that I should not dare
to complain of your unkindness. Yes, Sir, you were silent,
and you left your nephew nearly three months dependent on
the charity of her, to whom in the extreme of wretchedness you
had refused the loan of fifty dollars. Yes, Sir, you were silent.
Perhaps, you hoped that the poor forlorn creature you had
turned out of doors would, under the pressure of want, and far
removed from every friend, be driven to a vicious course, and
enable you to justify your barbarity by charges such as you
have now invented.
* * You say you were informed of my associating with the play-
ers and my decline into a very drab by a friend in Richmond.
Your letter shall be read in Richmond. You must produce
that friend, unless you are willing yourself to father the false-
hood which in Richmond will be notorious.
** I defy you Mr. Randolph to substantiate by the testimony
of any credible witness a single fact injurious to my reputation
from the time you turned me out of doors until the present
hour; and God knows that, if suffering could have driven me
to vice, there was no want of suffering. My husband, in
permitting me to write this letter, has enjoined me not to
mention his kindness, otherwise I could give a detail of cir-
cumstances which, as they would not involve any pecuniary
claim, might touch even your heart. You speak of him as an
infirm old man, into whom I have struck the fangs of a harpy,
after having acted in your family the part of a vampire. I
pray you, Mr. *John Randolph of Roanoke,* to be persuaded
that such idle declamation, tho* it might become a school boy
to his aunt and cousins, is misplaced on the present occasion.
You know as little of the manner in which my present con-
nection began as of other things with which you pretend to be
acquainted. I loved my husband before he made me his wife.
I love him still more now that he has made me mother of one
of the finest boys I ever saw ; now that his kindness soothes the
anguish which I cannot but feel from your immanly attack. I
am very sorry I am obliged to speak of your nephew. I would
fain impute to his youth, or to some other excusable cause, his
unnatural, and I must say, criminal, conduct. I hope the
strength of my constitution, the consolation I derive from the
Randolph as a Man 291
few friends who are left and the caresses of my beloved babe
will enable me to resist the measures taken for my destruction
hy him and his uncle. Had his relations rested only on your
testimony, I should not have hesitated to have acquitted
him of the charge ; but a part of them at least, not fully detailed
in your letter, was made in Mr. Ogden's presence. This
young man received several small sums of money which I sent
him unasked, while he remained at Cambridge. Early in
April, by a letter, which he addressed to me as his 'Dear good
Aunt,' he requested the loan of thirty or forty dollars. I did
pot imitate the example you had set but immediately enclosed
a check payable to his order for thirty dollars. I heard no
more of him until the end of July, when a letter, dated in
Providence, announced his intention of seeing me soon at
Morrisania. At the same time, letters to my husband men-
tioned the dangerous condition of his health. On the 4th of
August, a phaeton drove to the door with a led horse, and a
person, appearing to be a servant, stepped out and enquired
for Mr. Randolph. He was directed to the stable, and shortly
after Mr. Randolph landed from the boat of a Packet. His
appearance bespoke severe illness. I showed him to his
chamber, and venture to say from that time to the moment of
his departure he was treated by me with the tenderness and
kindness of a mother. The injunction I have already men-
tioned restrains me from going into particulars. My health
was injured by the fatigue to which I was exposed, the burthen
of which I could not diminish without neglecting him; for I
could not procure good nurses or servants. My husband's
health, too, was, I believe, injured by the confinement which
this youth occasioned; for he was prevented from taking a
journey we were about to make for air and exercise among the
mountains of New Jersey. We were also under the disagree-
able necessity of keeping a servant whom our friends had
denounced as a thief. By the bye, I have reason to believe
he is one of those *ancient domestics' you have taken under
your protection. If so, I must in justice to myself inform you
that your friend, Geo. Bevens, dismissed only two days before
your arrival, was shortly after admitted to a lodging in the
Bridewell of New York for theft. I had an opportunity.
292 John Randolph of Roanoke
indeed I was made by my laundress, to observe that your
nephew (though driving his phaeton with a servant on horse
back) had not a pair of stockings fit to wear; his man, Jonathan,
dtmning him in my presence for his wages. At one time, in
particular, passing by his door, I heard Jonathan ask for
money. My heart prompted me to offer relief. As I entered
his room for that purpose (it was two days after a violent
hemorrhage which threatened his life), he was rising feebly
from his bed, and, when I mentioned my object, said in a tremu-
lous voice, *My dear Aunt, I was coming to ask you.* I bade
his servant follow me and gave him $5.00. Tudor had re-
turned the $30 first borrowed but, shortly afterwards,
increased the debt $10 to furnish as I supposed, his travelling
companion, Mr. Bruce, [of Rhode Island] with the means of
returning home. A few days after that, I supplied him with
an additional $20. I gave stockings and, before his departure,
sent $30 to one of Mr. Morris* nieces to purchase handkerchiefs
which he wanted and which his mother said he could not afford
to buy. The evening you left Morrisania, I received a note
from this lady excusing herself for not executing my
conmiission by reason of the death of a cousin and returning
the money because she understood that my sister was to go
the next Tuesday. You witnessed my siuprise at receiving
such information in such a way. You will recollect what
followed. After your departure, I communicated the note to
your nephew, and told him, as he was going to town, he could
purchase the handkerchiefs for himself. I gave him thirty
dollars which he put in his pocket and thanked me. Two days
after, when in town, he said to me, *Aunt I wish you would
choose the handkerchiefs yourself; I should value them more.*
He forgot, however, to return the money. I purchased the
Hdkffs, together with a merino tippet to protect his chest, and
received again his thanks which were reiterated the same day
by his mother at Mr. Ogden's. The debt, amounting to
$65.00, she paid at Morrisania. The $30 were enclosed in her
note, dated Satiu*day morning, of which I send you herewith
[a] copy together with that of the 3rd November from
Philadelphia, (a)
**And now, Sir, put the actual parties out of the question,
Randolph as a Man 293
and say what credit can be due to the calumnies of a person
in your nephew's situation, soliciting and receiving favors to
the very last moment. Let me add, after he had poured his
slanders into your ear or repeated them from your dictation,
he left me to discharge one of his doctor's bills, which he said
I offered to pay, and receive his thanks in advance. Is it
proper, or is it decent to found such calunmies on the suspicions
of such a creature?, even supposing them to have originated
in his mind, and not been, as is too probable, instigated by
you? Could anything but the most determined and inveter-
ate malice induce any one above the level of an idiot to believe
the only fact he pretended to articulate ? Who can believe me
cruel to my child ? When it is notorious my fault is too great
indulgence ; that my weakness is too great solicitude, and that I
have been laughed at for instances of maternal care by which
my health was impaired. You cite as from him these words,
'How shocking she looks. I have not met her eyes three times
since I have been in the house.' Can you believe this? Can
you believe others to believe it ? How happens it you did not
cry out as anyone else would have done ? * Why did you stay in
that house ? Why did you submit to her kindness ? Why did
you accept her presents? Why did you pocket her money?*
To such an apostrophe he might have replied perhaps. *Uncle
I could not help it. I was penniless, in daily expectation that
you or my mother would bring relief. When at last she came,
I found her almost as ill-off as myself. We were both detained
till you arrived. ' To this excuse, which is a very lame one for a
person who had a phaeton to sell or pledge, any one who feels
a spark of generosity in his bosom would reply. 'Why, then,
wretch, having from necessity or choice laid yourself under
such a load of obligations, do you become the calumniator of
your benefactress? Are you yet to learn what is due to the
rites of hospitality, or have you, at the early age of nineteen,
been taught to combine profound hypocrisy with deadly hate
and assume the mask of love that you may more surely plant
the assassin's dagger? Where did you learn these horrible
lessons ? ' This last, Sir, would have been a dangerous question
on your part. He might have replied and may yet reply,
* Uncle, I learned this from you.*
294 John Randolph of Roanoke
"But, to return to the wonderful circumstance that this
young man had not met my eyes above once a month, though
he saw me frequently every day. That he met them seldomer
than I wished is true. I was sorry to observe what others
had remarked, that he rarely looked any one in the face. I
excused this sinister air to myself, and tried to excuse it to
others as a proof of uncommon modesty, of which nevertheless
he gave no other proof. I sometimes succeeded in my en-
deavours to make people believe that this gloomy, guilty look
proceeded from bashfulness. I know not, and shall not pre-
tend to guess, what heavy matter pressed on his conscience;
perhaps it was only the disposition to be criminal. At present,
[now] that he has an opportunity (with your assistance) to
gratify that disposition, he will, I presume, be less capable of
asstuning the air of an honest man, [and] he will probably find
himself frequently on leaving good company in condition to
repeat the same sentence of self-condemnation: 'Uncle, I
have not met their eyes three times since I have been in the
house.'
**You make him say, * my first impression as far back as I
can remember is that she was an unchaste woman — my brother
knew her better than I — she never could do anjrthing with
him ' — This too is admirable testimony to support your filthy
accusations.
**Pray, Mr. John Randolph of Roanoke, why did you not
inform your audience that, when you turned me out of doors,
this Mr. Tudor Randolph was but nine years old, and his
brother, poor deaf and dumb Saint George, just thirteen —
Can it be necessary to add to your confusion by a single
remark? It seems to me, if any one present at your wild
declamation, had noticed this fact, you would have been hissed
even by a sisterhood of old maids. Unluckily for you, I have
letters from poor Saint George, one of which, written shortly
before his late malady, is filled with assurances of attachment.
In that which I received, while I was in Washington, he makes
particular and affectionate inquiries respecting Col [Monroe's]
family. These show that he does not participate in your
ingratitude, but feels as he ought the kindness of that gentle-
man, who, at your instance, took him into his family in London
Randolph as a Man 295
and watched over him with parental care. You repay this
favor by slanders which I have the charity to believe you are too
polite to pronounce in the Col's presence. I have a letter from
my sister telling me the pleasure St. George manifested at the
present of my portrait I made him. I have a letter also from
her, shortly after her house was burnt, in which she tells me
among the few things saved she was rejoiced to find my por-
trait which you brought out with your own. By this act, you
have some right to it, and, should my present ill health lead me
shortly to the grave, you may hang it up in your castle at
Roanoke next to the Englishman's scalp — ^a trophy of the
family prowess. I observe. Sir, in the course of your letter
allusion to one of Shakespeare's best tragedies. I trust you are
by this time convinced that you have clumsily performed the
part of 'honest lago.' Happily for my life, and for my hus-
band's peaoe, you did not find in him a headlong, rash Othello.
For a full and proper description of what you have written
and spoken on this occasion, I refer you to the same admirable
author. He will tell you it is a tale told by an idiot, full of
sound and fury, signifying nothing, (a)
'Ann C. Morris."
Copies of these letters are in the possession of the New
York Public Library and other copies are in that of the
Virginia Historical Society. Numerous other copies, in
the possession of private individuals or booksellers, have
been brought to the attention of the author besides. The
copies, in the possession of the New York Public Library,
came to it from Henrietta Graham Youngs, the wife of
Thomas F. Youngs, of New York, a member of the Morris
family connection, and are supposed to have been made
from the original and copy formerly in the possession of
Mrs. Gouverneur Morris.' Not only her reply to Ran-
dolph's letter but her correspondence with Jos. C. Cabell
and Wm. B. Giles showed that it was her desire to give as
wide circulation as possible, in Virginia at any rate, to the
« Letter, dated Mar. 4, 1919, from H. M. Lydenbei^g, Reference Librar-
rian, N. Y. Pub. Libr., to the Author.
296 John Randolph of Roanoke
correspondence; and it may well be doubted whether,
since papyrus rolls and parchment sheets ceased to per-
form the present function of printed books, any imprinted
thing of the kind has ever been so frequently copied and
circulated.
A curious supplement to this correspondence was a
letter written by Randolph to Judith Randolph from
Georgetown, about a year later, which discloses the fact
that, at the time of his brother Richard's death, he was
not cognizant of the true circumstances surrounding the
Glenlyvar incident, and hints — ^an insinuation, supported
by nothing but his suspicion — ^that Nancy Randolph,
influenced by the knowledge that Richard Randolph had
of her secret and the strong aversion that he had formed
to her, might have administered poison to him.
** In Dec. 1795," the letter says, ** I went to Charleston and
Georgia; returned in May, [and] went on a few days afterwards
to Petersburg with my brother Richard, where I was taken
sick. He left me convalescent (himself in perfect health), and
returned home via Richmond; having business at the Federal
court. I have never been able to account for my not having
been sent for at first; for of the circumstances of my brother's
death I was entirely in ignorance until since my return home in
March last. I made none but general inquiry and was told
that an emetic (Tartar) had caused his dissolution. Of his
marked aversion to Nancy (now Mrs. Morris) I had not the
most distant hint or suspicion. On the contrary, I supposed
that, like myself, she was agonized with grief at the Idss of her
best friend and benefactor; little as I dreamt at that time what
she owed him. Did she mix or hand him the medicine ? I ask
it for my own ease and comfort. Had she the opportunity for
doing the deed? The motive is now plain as well as her capa-
bility for the act. Had I known the abhorrence that he
expressed for her, worlds should not have tempted me to re-
main in the same house with her. I was an inmate with her for
how many years (10 years was it not ?) under your roof." *
> Georgetown, Jan. 20, 181 6, Grinnan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 297
This letter was apparently written in acknowledgment
of a statement made to Randolph by Judith, at his re-
quest, of the circumstances surrotmding Richard's death.
At one time Mrs. Morris made an effort to draw Wm.
B. Giles into the quarrel between Randolph and herself
opened up by the 1814-15 correspondence; but with no
effect except to elicit a letter from Randolph to Giles as
keen and cold as the point of a rapier which gave Giles a
plain warning that, if he intervened in that quarrel, he
would be held to the full measure of personal responsi-
biUty.'
There is no evidence that Nancy Randolph was to any
extent such a "moral Clytemnestra ot her lord" as Ran-
dolph made her out to be; but her correspondence with
Joseph C. Cabell, long after the interchange of letters
between herself and Randolph, suggests the suspicion
that, if she had been a man, Randolph himself might well
have been the subject of a Greek tragedy ; and this, despite
the fact that, in the first of her letters to Cabell, she pic-
tures her family life as gliding on so smoothly in her lux-
urious home that slander, to use her exact words, * * sounds
like distant thimder. ''^ In another letter to Cabell, she
says : * * I seldom think of Jack unless his attacks on some
other persons become a subject of discussion — wretched
animal — •
***He from whom no one ever grew wiser,
He of invective the great monopolizer.'"^
It is evident from the same letter that her idea was that
it was from David Ogden, whom she paints in the very
blackest colors, that John Randolph derived his belief in
New York that she was dishonoring the bed of her hus-
band. Indeed, she says that Jack Randolph became but
' Letter from J. R. to Giles, Mar. 12, 1815, N. Y. Pub. Libr.
' Morrisania, May 30, 1828, U. of Va. Libr.
i Morrisania, Oct. 14, 183 1, U. of Va. Libr.
298 John Randolph of Roanoke
the humble tool of Ogden. (a) In this letter she terms
him ** Crazy Jack,** notwithstanding the fact that, in an
earlier letter she had said : * * Some people think him crazy,
but it seems to me more like the accoimt given of those
whom Satan entered in old times.**' A reply by Cabell,
to one of Mrs. Morris* letters discloses the fact that, in
addition to her offer to him to show how corrupt the
branch of the Randolph family, to which Jack Randolph
belonged, had always been — an offer prompted by the
attack which Randolph had made upon the intellectual
capacity of William H. Cabell, at one time Governor, and
afterwards presiding Judge, of the Court of Appeals of
Virginia — she had also offered to place at the disposal of
Wm. H. Cabell, for his retaliatory use, certain letters
which had passed between Randolph and Gouvemeur
Morris about the time of Randolph's visit to Morrisania.
The tender was made through Jos. C. Cabell, and was
declined by him on behalf of Wm. H. Cabell, as the same
letter shows. The same letter also shows that she had
nevertheless forwarded the letters to Jos. C. Cabell for his
personal perusal, as he supposed. Whilst he in his reply
speaks of the cordial feelings that Judge St. George
Tucker cherished for Mrs. Morris tmtil the close of his
life; sends her the good wishes of Judge Tucker *s widow
and Mrs. Cabell; thanks her for her tasteful and much
valued presents to Mrs. Cabell at different times, and even
begs Mrs. Morris to accept his humble prayers that her
son might live to be the comfort of her remaining years,
that she might survive the many troubles by which she
still seemed to be surrotmded, and that increasing years
might bring to her all the indemnification for past injuries
and misfortunes which prosperity and this life can afford ;
yet it is obvious that neither Joseph C. Cabell, nor his
brother Wm. H. Cabell, had any idea of allowing them-
selves to be embroiled with such a ** monopolizer of invec-
' Morrisania, June 7, 1830, U. of Va. Libr.
Randolph as a Man 299
tive " or Hotspur as John Randolph of Roanoke. In fact,
Jos. C. Cabell did not reply to Mrs. Morris for more than
a year after the receipt of the letter which his reply
acknowledged. '
At one time, Randolph entertained a very cordial regard
for Jos. C. Cabell ; but the friendly intercoiu-se between
the two men ceased for some reason after the Burr trial
with which the latter, like Randolph, was connected as a
Grand Juror. Since Randolph was never intimate, so
far as we know, with any other member of the Cabell
connection, there was nothing to restrain him from giving
full vent to partisan violence, when Wm. H. Cabell,
though at the time a Judge of the Court of Appeals of
Virginia, allowed himself to be made the presiding officer
of the Adams, or anti- Jackson, Convention held in the
City of Richmond ; which was the occasion of Randolph's
attack on him. (a)
One of the letters written by Mrs. Morris to Jos. C.
Cabell shows that as late as 183 1 she was still in corre-
spondence with some of her early Virginia friends and
relations, namely; Mrs. Scott, Mrs. Carrington, and Polly
Harrison; as well as some of her family connections,
namely; her cousin Lucy Randolph, of Alabama, her sister
Mrs. David Meade Randolph, and her sister-in-law, Mrs.
Thomas Mann Randolph, the daughter of Thomas Jeffer-
son.'
The letters from Mrs. Morris to Joseph C. Cabell also
have much to say about her son Gouvemeur, to whom she
seems to have been very much attached, and whom she
describes as being in 1831 six feet one inch, in height,
though only 18 years and some months old.^
She also has something to say, with a distinct under-
strain of pride, about the heavy charges from which she
» Warminster, Sept. 6, 1831, U. of Va. Libr.
« Morrisania, Sept. 13, 1831, & Oct. 14, 1831, U. of Va. Libr.
» Morrisania, Oct. 14, 1831, U. of Va. Libr.
300 John Randolph of Roanoke
had freed the estate committed to her care as trustee and
guardian by Gouvemeur Morris: **Now, " she sa3rs, "the
ante-nuptial contract is the only remaining debt; so that
I can safely say my noble-minded son's property is tmen-
cumbered.'*'
But more interesting still is the account which she gives
in this letter of the manner in which she came to be the
wife of her husband.
**More than 22 years have elapsed," she declares, "since I
came here to live, and I have nothing to reproach myself with.
In my husband's biography will be seen an account of his
domestic happiness. I knew Mr. Morris in the years 86 and 88.
He visited me at old Mrs. Pollack's, in New York, in 1808, and
expressed a wish that some reduced gentlewoman would under-
take to keep his house, as the lower class of house-keepers often
provoked the servants to a riot in his dwelling. He went to
his lands where he remained 6 months; on his retiuti he pro-
posed my coming to keep house for him; I thought it much
better to have employment than remain a burthen on my
friends; all his letters to me are copied (by him) in one of the
letter books Mr. Sparks [Jared Sparks] has in Boston."*
And in the first of her letters to Cabell she declared :
* * I glory in stating that I was married in a gown patched
at the elbows, being one of the only two I had in the
world."
In these letters, too, Mrs. Morris also makes much of
the money that she or her husband had advanced on
Tudor's account, but which she admits was all paid back
to her by Judith Randolph. Whatever credit may attach
to her other charges against John Randolph, it is imques-
tionable that she made entirely too much of this matter.
Tudor was but a youth, and evidence has come down to
us that, though not in the least dissipated, he lived quite
» Morrisania, Oct. 14, 1831, U. of Va. Libr.
• Morrisania, May 30, 1828, U. of Va. Libr.
Randolph as a Man 301
extravagantly when he was pursuing his brilliant career
at Harvard." It was a long way from Harvard to Vir-
ginia then, and his need for the assistance of his Atmt,
Mrs. Morris, was, doubtless, entirely unexpected to both
his mother and his uncle; for nothing stands out more
saliently from the life of Randolph than the generous
manner in which he lavished money as well as affection
on Tudor. Inmiediately after Randolph's visit to Morris-
ania, we find him expressing in a letter to Dr. Dudley his
dissatisfaction with Judith because she would not permit
Tudor to sit for his portrait to Sully in Philadelphia;
** under the thin pretext, " he said, **that the paint would
prove injurious to his Itmgs. "'
The letter, to which Jos. C. Cabell sent his reply,
contains a paragraph which adds another curious feature
to the remarkable conditions tmder which Randolph's
savage letter to Mrs. Morris was written in New
York.
** When Judy went from here [Morrisania] we accompanied
her to the city and lodged near her. My husband was twice a
day in Jack's sick room and I took my son in to see him also.
The evening after our return, our market-man brought a note
from Jack desiring to see Mr. Morris immediately. He
requested me to write an answer stating that he and our little
boy had taken cold, and he could not leave home. I enclose
now his — ^Jack's — ^little red note. Next it seems his master-
piece was composed, and lastly the one which I sent you a
month ago. You observe he mentions not being able to bear
jolting, then said, if Mr. Morris had answered his note, he
should have come here."^
The letter which Mrs. Morris mentions as having been
sent to Jos. C. Cabell the month before was a letter from
' Life of Quincy, 342.
« Phila., Dec. 4, 1814, Letters to a Y, jR., p. 166.
» Morrisania, June 7, 1830, U. of Va. Libr.
302 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph to Gouvemeur Morris; and for some reason it
never reached Cabell. '
It was when Tudor was at Morrisania that he received
the autobiographical letter from his imcle on which we
have drawn so freely in the earlier part of this book.
After Tudor's death, Randolph was desirous of reclaiming
this letter, but he was tmable to do so ; and, shortly after
his own death, it was published in part in the New York
Cammercial Advertiser. It was evidently stispected by
Jos. C. Cabell that it was published by Mrs. Morris,
because a letter from J. Aug. Smith to Cabell, dated Sept.
25, 1833, states that he had called on the editor of the
Commercial Advertiser, at Cabell's request, and had been
assured by him that the letter had not been placed in his
hands by Mrs. Morris but by a clergyman and professor
in one of their high institutions whose name he refused to
disclose. '
It can be truly said, however, that rarely have infirmi-
ties of temper been attended with more palliating circum-
stances than in Randolph's case. * * A letter from his most
intimate and valued friend, Mr. Macon, written to me
after his death, " Thomas H. Benton says, '.'expressed the
belief that he had never enjoyed diuing his life one day of
perfect health — such as well people enjoy. "^ **I believe
that he never had an hour of good health, nor was he ever
free from physical suffering," is the equally emphatic
testimony of Dr. LB. Rice, a resident of Charlotte Cotmty,
who knew Randolph well. ^ To be confined to what Heine
called a **mattrass grave" is about the only physical
extremity to which Randolph was never subjected. That
he should have been the active horseman and sportsman
that he was, and that he should have so frequently par-
ticipated, often at great length, in the debates of the
* Jos. C. Cabell, to Ann C. Morris, Warminster, Sept. 6, 1831, U. of
Va. Libr.
• U. of Va. Libr. » jo Yrs: View, v. i, 473. < Bouldin, 115.
Randolph as a Man 303
House, are but proofs of the indomitable spirit which
nothing but absolutely the last pressiu-e of Death's skele-
ton fingers upon his throat ever subdued. As far back as
1 79 1, when he was but i8 years of age, we find him writing
from Philadelphia to his yoimg friend, Henry M. Rut-
ledge, that he was as imwell as he had ever been in the
course of his life, and, though not dangerously ill, was
pestered with a ciu-sed disorder in his bowels which gave
him great pain and sensations similar to those produced
by sea-sickness ; and chronic diarrhoea became so fastened
upon him that, as time weat on, he repeatedly stated in
his letters that food passed through his stomach and
bowels entirely tmchanged.
In 1803, when he was but 30 years of age, his appear-
ance was that of an old man, prematurely overtaken by
physical decrepitude, and doomed to an early death.'
In 1804, he wrote to Nicholson that his nerves were
shattered to pieces.* In February, 1805, he wrote to
Nicholson that an excruciating pain, accompanied by
fever which flew like lightning from his head to his stomach,
bowels, hands, etc., had inflicted upon him all the torments
of the damned, and compelled him to resort to an opiate. ^
This pain he referred to the gout, **a proteus, " he said,
** which can assume any shape in the long and dreadful
catalogue of disease. " ^ Later in the same year, he wrote
to Nicholson that his bowels were torn to pieces. ^
It would be a sickening task to enumerate all the
occasions on which serious or alarming illness drew ex-
pressions of offering from Randolph. They were so
numerous that, at times, we cannot but recall the savage
accusation of John Quincy Adams that Randolph turned
his diseases to commodity, ^ or wonder whether he did not
» Bouldin, 170. » Bizarre, July i, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
» Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
4 Letter to St. G. Tucker, Feb. 22, 1805, Lucas MSS..
s Washington, Nov. 16, 1805, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
• Memoirs, Feb. 26, 183 1, v. 8, 328.
304 John Randolph of Roanoke
suffer more than most stricken men do merely because his
sensibility of body and mind was so much keener than
theirs. One of his letters to Elizabeth T. Coalter indicates
that he, himself, felt that things were not always quite as
bad as he represented them to be. **A11 our family, " he
said, ''make too much fuss about health; so don't mind
me. It is the effect of former affluence and ease. With
the cause it will gradually cease. ' ' * But, even after taking
Randolph's peculiarities of temperament and training
fully into accoimt, we are amply warranted in doubting
whether any man, as gravely diseased throughout his life as
he was, ever exhibited more physical and mental activity.
We pass over all the stages ot his life except those when
his ill health was so aggravated as to imperil his existence
or to subject him to extreme sickness. To do otherwise,
would be out of the question ; for what he said of himself
in 1810 he could have truthfully said of himself at almost
any period of his lite : "Indeed, exemption from pain has
become with me a highly pleasurable sensation. "*
As early as February 20, 1808, Randolph, when recover-
ing from a fall, which had confined him to Philip Key's
home at Georgetown for some time, wrote to Nicholson
as follows :
" I can walk after a fashion, but the worst of my case is a
general decay of the whole system. I am racked with pain
and up the better part of every night from disordered stomach
and bowels. My digestive faculties are absolutely worn out.
When to all this you add spitting of blood from the lungs and a
continual fever, you may have some idea of my situation. But
crazy as my constitution is, it will perhaps survive that of our
country."*
In the succeeding year, he wrote to his stepfather from
Bizarre that he was still in that situation in which life is
» Feb. 18, 1822, Dr. R. B. Cannichael MSB.
» Letter to St. Geo. Tucker, Geoigetown, Mar. 13, 1810, Lucas MSS.
< Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 305
but a burthen to its possessor — racked with pain and never
for two hours together free from some affection of his
stomach and bowels; that, in short, his whole nervous
system was shattered to atoms, and that, if it were not
for the society and attentions of Theodore Dudley, his
existence would be insupportable. ' In 1811, he wrote to
his sister that he did not know a day without pain or dis-
quietude.^ By this time, diarrhoea — ^the disease which
(he said) had terminated the career of every member of
his family — ^had become chronically fixed upon him.*
Many years later, he took an outbreak of this malady
lightly enough to heart, however, to write humorously to
Dr. Brockenbrough that, like the gallant Gen. H. (William
Henry Harrison, we suppose) **he was pursued** by it.^
(a) In 1 8 13, he believed himself to be on the verge of the
grave from rhetimatism and gout. ^ In the same year, in
a letter to Dr. Dudley from Bowling Green, he describes
himself as having been nearly mad with pain,^ and a little
later, he wrote to Francis Scott Key from Roanoke,
**Alas! so far from taking the field against the poor par-
tridges, I can hardly hobble about my own cabin. It
pleased God on Tuesday last to deprive me ot the use of
my limbs.'*' Indeed, the low condition to which Ran-
dolph was reduced in 181 7 was for some years the standard
by which he judged the severity of all the morbid onsets
that he had to face from time to time afterwards. Refer-
ring to this attack, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough :
*'It was, I believe, a case of croup combined with the
affection of the liver and the lungs. Nor was it unlike tetanus,
since the muscles of the neck and back were rigid and the jaw
locked. I never expected, whpn the clock struck two, to hear
» Nov. 14, 1809, Lucas MSB.
» Aug. 19, 181 1, J. C. Grinnan MSB.
3 Letter to Nicholson, Bizarre, Dec. 4, 1809, Nicholson MSB., Libr. Cong.
4 Garland, v. 2, 270. « Letters to a Y. /?., 137.
^LeUers to a Y, R,, 139. » Oct. 17, 1813, Garland, v. 2, 26.
VOL. n — 30
3o6 John Randolph of Roanoke
the bell again; fortunately, as I found myself going, I dis-
patched a servant (about one) to the apothecary for an ounce
of laudanum. Some of this poured down my throat through
my teeth restored me to something like life. I was quite
delirious, but had method in my madness; for they tell me I
ordered Juba to load my gun and to shoot the first 'Doctor'
that should enter the room; adding, 'They are only mustard
seed and will serve just to sting him."*'
By the next day, after the inauguration of Monroe,
Randolph had rallied enough to leave Washington for
Richmond. His description of the journey is too charac-
teristic to be omitted :
**No mitigation of my cruel s)miptoms took place until the
third day of my journey, when I threw physic to the dogs and,
instead of opium, tincture of columbo, hypercarbonate of soda,
etc., etc., I drank, in defiance of my physician's prescription,
copiously of cold spring water and ate plentifully of ice. Since
that change of regimen, my strength has increased astonish-
ingly, and I have even gained some flesh or rather skin. The
first day, Wednesday the fifth, I could travel no farther than
Alexandria. At Dumfries, where I lay, but slept not, on
Thursday night, I had nearly given up the ghost. At a spring,
five miles on this side, after crossing Chappawamsick, I took
upon an empty and sick stomach upwards of a pint of living
water, unmixed with Madeira, which I have not tasted since.
It was the first thing that I had taken into my stomach since
the first of February that did not produce nausea. It acted
Uke a charm, and enabled me to get on to B*s that night, where
I procured ice. I also devoured with impunity a large pippin
(forbidden fruit to me). Next day I got to the Oaks forty-two
miles. Here, I was more unwell than the night before. On
Sunday morning, I reached my friends, Messers. A. & Co. to
breakfast at half -past eight."* *
After arriving in Richmond, Randolph had a relapse,
and lay utterly prostrate for many weeks at the home of
» Feb. 23, 1817, Garland, v. 2, 91. « Garland, v. 2, 93.
Randolph as a Man 3^7
Mr. Cunningham in that city. ' In 1824, he wrote to Dr.
Brockenbrough that the noisome atmosphere of the House
had overcome him and that he had had a copious effusion
of blood from his lungs' ; and in 1825, he wrote to Francis
W. Gilmer from Roanoke that he had been at death's door. ^
In 1826, he wrote to the same correspondent:
*' In the nature of things, it is impossible that I can hold out
long. Neither is it desirable to myself, and therefore ought
not to be to my friends. I am now sorry that I accepted the
seat in the Senate, as I shall be on the hospital list all winter.
I am plied by the fiercest tortures, with small and few
remissions.'*^
During this illness, he had what he thought was the
highest fever, but one, that he had ever felt.^ Shortly
after he formed this impression, he wrote to Dr. Brocken-
brough : " I am really ill ; the whole machine is rotten ; the
nails and screws that I drive will not take hold but draw
out with the decayed wood."^ In the succeeding year,
he thought that he had not been so sensible of the failure
of his bodily powers since 181 7. ** A man with a tooth-
ache, " he said, apologetically, ** thinks only of his fang. "^
In the succeeding year, his plight, if anything, was
worse. From Roanoke, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough
that, since his return to that spot, he had scarcely been off
his bed, except when he was in it. "My cough has in-
creased very much," he added, "and my fever never
intermits; with this, pain in the breast and all the attend-
ant ills. " * A little later, he wrote to the same friend that
nothing seemed to relieve the anxiety, distress and languor
to which he was by turns subjected, or the pains, rheu-
» Garland, v. 2, 94. » Apr. 25, Garland, v. 2, 218.
J July 2, Bryan MSS. < Washington, Jan. 17, 1826, Bryan MSS.
» Letter to Dr. Brockenbrough, Feb. lo, 1826, J. C. Grinnan MSS.
• Mar. 4, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 269.
» Letter to Dr. Brockenbrough, Feb. 21, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 286.
• Mar. 30, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 290.
3o8 John Randolph of Roanoke
matic or gouty, that were continually fljring about him. *
He was in that state of mind which regards the good health,
that is the common possession of most men and women,
as the gift, of all others, spun by the Parcse from their
finest wool. "But I have so true a judgment," he said,
a few weeks later, "of the value of this world and its
contents that I would not give the strength and health of
one of my negro men for the wisdom of Solomon and the
wealth of Croesus and the power of Caesar.
" * Though Solomon, with a thousand wives,
To get a wise successor strives;
But one, and he a fool, survives.' "*
In the next year, his physical misery is so poignant that
he writes of himself in these terms to Dr. Brockenbrough,
who, faithful friend though he was, must have wearied at
times of the procession of grisly horrors which Randolph's
letters steadily kept before his eyes.
*'My dear friend, I hope to hear from you by Sam on
Saturday night, and to receive Lord Byron in a coffin where I
shall very soon be. I daily grow worse; if that can be called
'growth' which is diminution and not increase. My food
passes from me unchanged. Liver, lungs, stomach, (which I
take to be the original seat of disease) bowels and the whole
carnal man are diseased to the last extent. Diarrhea incessant
— nerves broken — cramps — spasms — vertigo — Shall I go on?
— No, I will not. I have horses that I cannot ride — ^wine
that I cannot drink. . . . my cough is tremendous. . . . My
dear friend, you and I know that the cough and diarrhea and
pain in the side and shoulder are the last stage of my disorder,
whether of lungs, in the first instance, or of liver. I send you
the measure of my thigh at the thickest part. Calves, I have
none, except those that suck their dams; but, then, I have
» May 22, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 292.
■ Letter to Dr. Brockenbrough, Roanoke, June 12, 1827, Garland, v. 2,
293*
Randolph as a Man 309
ankles that will outmeasure yours or any other man's as far
as you beat me in thighs."'
When Randolph next wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough, it
was to tell him that he had been compelled to resort to
the drug of which, a year or so later, he was to say : " I live
by, if not upon, opiiun. "*
"I write again," he said, **to tell you that extremity of
suffering has driven me to the use of what I have had a horror
of all my life — I mean opitmi; and I have derived more relief
from it than I could have anticipated. I took it to mitigate
severe pain and to check the diarrhea. It has done both; but,
to my surprise, it has had an equally good effect upon my
cough which now does not disturb me in the night, . . . yet
I can't ride, but I hobble with a stick, and scold and threaten
my lazy negroes, who are building a house between my well and
kitchen, and two (a stable boy and an undergardener) mending
the road against you come."^
In the latter part of 1829, Randolph, as we have seen,
experienced a considerable improvement in his health ; but,
in the early part of that year, he was worse off, if anything,
than he was in 1828, and, on April 21, 1829, he wrote to
Dr. Brockenbrough these pathetic words :
"My dear friend, we shall not 'meet in October'; I am
anchored for life. My disease every day assumes a more
aggravated character. I have been obliged to renounce wine
altogether. Coffee is my only cheerer. A high fever every
night which goes off about day-break with a colliquative sweat;
vile pain in the side and breast; incessant cough — ^with all my
tenacity of life, this can't hold long. I have rode once or twice
a mile or two, but it exhausts me. The last 3 days have
been warm, but, last night, we had a storm, and it was cold
again. Luckily, I have no appetite, for I have hardly any-
« Roanoke, May 27, 1828, Garland, v. 2, 307.
* Garland, v. 2, 344.
» Roanoke, May 30, 1828, Garland, v. 2, 308.
3tt> John Randolph of Roanoke
thing to eat, except asparagus, which is very fine and nice. I
tried spinach d la FrariQaise, but it disagrees with me. You see
that like Dogberry *I bestow all my tediousness upon you.'
You know my maxim 'that every man is of great consequence
to himself.' The trees are budding and the forest begins to
look gay, but, when I cast my eyes upon the blossoms, the sad
lines of poor Michael Bruce recur to my memory:
<i <
Now spring returns, but not to me returns
The vernal joy my better years have known.
Dim in my breast life's dying taper bums,
And all the joys of life with health are flown.' "'
The condition of Randolph's health after 1829 has
already been incidentally touched upon in the preceding
passages of this book, and it was marked by such painful
evidences of physical disintegration that no useful purpose
would be subserved by dwelling upon it more closely,
except to transcribe this last despairing groan in August,
1832, of a cruelly persecuted existence.
" My lungs made a noble resistance, but, like the Poles, they
were over-powered. The disease is now phthisis; and the
tubercles are softening for breaking out into open ulcers; liver,
spleen, heart, (I hope the pericardium) but above all, the
stomach diseased, and this last, I fear, incurable. My diet is
water gruel for breakfast; tomatoes and crackers for dinner,
and no supper; yet these, taken in the very smallest quantities
that can sustain life, throw me into all the horrors of an
indigestion; so that I put off eating as long as possible, and
thereby make a dinner of my breakfast, and a sort of supper at
five or six o'clock of my dinner. Sleep, I am nearly a stranger
to. Many nights I pass bolt upright in my easy chair; for,
when propped up by pillows in bed, so as to be nearly erect
from the hips upwards, I cough incessantly and am racked to
death."^
Randolph's disease was, and long had been, consump-
tion, we imagine, though none but a physician could say
« Apr. 21, 1829, Garland, v. 2, 316. » Garland, v. 2, 349.
Randolph as a Man 311
authoritatively whether the real nidus of his aihnents was
his lungs or his stomach. The wording of many of his
plaints about his maladies is so vivid that at times we find
it hard to believe that it is not just a little over-colored.
Certainly, never did any invalid drape his recitals of his
physical pains and disabilities with such a picturesque or
classical dress. Writing to Dr. Brockenbrough, about the
time of the Missouri controversy, he said: "Whatever it
be, something is passing in the noble viscera of no ordinary
character. They have got a Missouri question there that
threatens a divulsion of sotd from body."'
Referring to another occasion, on which he said that he
had received his death wound, he wrote to Dr. Brocken-
brough as follows :
**Had I not spoken on the last of these days, I might have
weathered this point, and clawed off of death's lee shore. My
disease is assuming a hectic type. I believe the lungs are
affected symptomatically through s)mipathy with the liver; at
least, I hope so. Yet, why hope when the vulture daily whets
his beak for a repast upon my ever growing liver, and his tal-
ons are fixed in my very vitals?**'
Even Randolph's body could not decay without shining
with a certain amount of phosphorescent brightness.
But we are not dependent solely upon himself for our
knowledge of his physical state during his last years in
Congress. In the letters to Weldon N. Edwards from
Nathaniel Macon, who lodged in the same house at Wash-
ington with Randolph in 1827 and 1828, there are numer-
ous references to Randolph's wretched health at that
period of his life, and it was a source of astonishment to
Macon, as it is to us, that such a disease-ridden man
could have delivered such long and effective speeches as
he did during the first session of the Twentieth Congress.
» Feb. 24, 1820, Garland, v. 2, 133.
'Feb. 23, 1820, Garland, v. 2, 132.
312 John Randolph of Roanoke
In one of these letters, dated February 17, 1828, Macon
says that, when it was remembered that Randolph, during
the winter of 1827 to 1828, had been confined more than
half of his time to his bed or room, it would seem impos-
sible that he could have spoken in the House as he had
done. * In a later letter, Macon said :
'* Mr. Randolph's health is generally bad; he is more thin and
poor than you ever saw him but once. He is almost skeleton;
to look at him, it does appear impossible that he could undergo
the fatigue of a long speech. His last is undoubtedly a
masterly one; but which is the best of all he ever made, I
cannot undertake to decide. Among the truly great, it is
diflScult to decide."*
In still another letter, Macon tells us that, by way of
illustrating the limitations on his strength at this time
when speaking, Randolph told him to tell Edwards that
his minutes had an hour's errand to go, like Sheridan's
six pence, which had to perform the office of two shillings. *
To Randolph's other infirmities was added poor eye-
sight ; and in his letters this subject was frequently men-
tioned. As early as February 15, 1800, he wrote to Nich-
olson: **I am literally blind, "^ and, nine years later, he
wrote to him that he would probably have to go to Phila-
delphia to consult the celebrated Dr. Physick about his
eyes which were sadly decayed.^ Twenty-two years
later, he wrote to his niece that his eyes had begtm to see
green ink and double strokes since he commenced the
letter that he was writing to her — ''sometimes violet."^
Twenty-three years later, he wrote to her that he could
not see a single character that he was tracing with his pen. ^
' Macon Papers, N. C. Hist. tSoc.
» Mar. 6, 1828, Macon Papers, N. C. Hist. Soc.
s Mar. 6, 1828, Macon Papers, N. C. Hist. Soc.
< Nicholson, MSS., Libr. Cong.
* May 25, 1809, Nicholson MSB., Libr. Cong.
< Feb. 19, 1822, Bryan MSS. ^ Aug. 23, 1823, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 313
Some of these letters betray the excessive ictus of an elo-
quent and high-keyed nature ; and all of them, we have no
doubt, were written at times when Randolph's eyes had
for some reason been abused to an imusual extent; for,
throughout his life, he was an eager reader of all sorts of
printed matter, and wrote in his own clear, painstaking
handwriting, which, imtil the very last, never exhibited
any sign of shattered nerves or bedimmed vision, thou-
sands of letters which, only in the rarest instances, revealed
the slightest vestige of hurry or negligence. But, perhaps,
the most distressing infirmity from which Randolph
suffered was his sleeplessness. *'We passed our evenings
together, or I may perhaps rather say, a good portion of
the night," we are told by Randolph's companion, of
1803, from whom we have already quoted: **For
he loved to sit up late because, as he was wont to
say, the grave, not the bed, was the place of rest for
him."'
In one of his letters to a friend, written immediately
after the death of William Pinkney (a) in 1822, Randolph
said: **I have not slept on an average two hours for the
last 6 days. " * ** I cannot sleep, " he wrote to Dr. Brock-
enbrough, some four years later, and then the ever-glowing
imagination adds: ** Death shakes his dart at me. "^ In
an earlier year, he wrote to Elizabeth T. Coalter, that he
had gone to bed, * * the night before at eleven and got not
an hour's sleep, and that disturbed. "
** Luckily on Friday," he continues, '*I was so worn down
that I went to bed before (by) sunset, fell asleep between seven
and eight, and slept until three in the morning, with the
exception of not more than half an hour towards the com-
mencement of my nap, when I was waked to know if I wouldn't
take coffee. It was God's mercy that I fell asleep again, or
» Bouldin, 173. » Garland, v. 2, 170.
* Mar. 4, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 269.
SH John Randolph of Roanoke
the slight brain fever that has tormented me might have
terminated in something worse than loss of life."*
When he was three or four years younger, he had jotted
down in one of his briefer journals these words: ** Slept
last night by means of hot infusion and pillow."^ "No
sleep" was the short and pointed entry that he had made
in another of these briefer journals some six months be-
fore. ^ Well might he have asked in the words of Comus:
''What hath night to do with sleep?" *' Rose at three,"
* * Rose at one, " * ' I Ve been up ever since half -past two, ' ' —
these are but some of the many entries and statements in
his journals and letters which show that he was as familiar
as a walking ghost with the deep waste and middle of the
night. -*
At times, Randolph's insomnia must have been trying
not only to the servants who looked after his personal
comfort at Washington, but to such of his friends as hap-
pened to be tmder the same roof with him during his
nocturnal vigils. On this point, the testimony which
Thomas H. Benton rendered in the Randolph will litiga-
tion is important; for, during the winter of 1821 to 1822,
both he and Randolph boarded at Dawson's in Washing-
ton.
** He slept very little," Benton testified, *' at times, he hardly
seemed to sleep at all for nights together — and, at all hours of
the night, was accustomed to tap at my door very softly — just
enough for me to hear it (as he used to say) if I was awake, and
not to wake me if I was asleep; but, being very wakeful myself,
I usually heard his lightest tap, and always told him to come
in. He would then sit on the bed and talk with me in the
dark."s
« Feb. 18, 1822, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
» Aug. 15, 1818, Libr. Cong. s Va. Hist. Soc,
< Journal Va. Hist. Soc, Apr. 28, 1824, and May 9, 1824, and letter from
J. R. to E. T. Coalter, Feb. 18, 1822.
» Coalter 's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
Randolph as a Man 315
With such lidless, dragon eyes as these, a good night's
sleep is not a commonplace occurrence, but a voluptuous
delight.
After the adjournment of Congress on March 3» 1823,
Randolph hurried off to Oakland, the home of his friend,
William R. Johnson, of Chesterfield County, Virginia,
who was then looking forward eageriy to the great race
between Eclipse and Henry, the pride of the North and
South respectively, which was to come off on Long Island
in the month of May, 1823. The change of scene, air, and
mental occupation produced such a change in his state of
health that he could describe a night that he had spent at
Chesterfield Court House as if it had been a draught of
sparkling wine.
"To that night," he said, *' spent on a shuck mattress in a
little garret room at Chesterfield Court House, Sunday, March,
the 9th, 1823, 1 look back with delight. It was a stormy night.
The windows clattered, and William R. Johnson got up several
times to try and put a stop to the noise by thrusting a glove
between the loose sashes. I heard the noise ; I even heard him ;
but it did not disturb me; I enjoyed a sweet nap of eight hours,
during which he said he never heard me breathe. N.B. I
had fasted all day and supped (which I have not done since)
on a soft egg and a bit of biscuit. My feelings next day were
as new and delightful as those of any bride the day after her
nuptials, and the impression (on memory at least) as strong."*
(a)
The treatment and regimen upon which Randolph
relied in combating illness deserve a word of comment.
He once wrote to Nicholson that he was not willing to take
anything from his physician except his advice." When
he first fell ill at Washington in 181 7, he called in two phy-
sicians, but, later, he trusted to his own knowledge of
the pharmacopoeia to dose himself with medicines, among
' Garland, v. 2, 19.
» Bizarre, Jan. 24, 1810, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
3i6 John Randolph of Roanoke
which calomel, of which, in the course of his life he some-
times took as much as ten or twelve grains at a time, ' was
one.^ "Drugs," he wrote to Nicholson, "are poison to
me in any shape in which they can be administered; air,
exercise and an tmdisturbed mind, essential to my very
existence. " ^ This is all intelligent enough; but the meas-
lu^e of his need for air would have been pronoimced little
better than aerophobia by Benjamin Franklin. "Don't
be afraid of fresh air/' Randolph wrote to Elizabeth T.
Coalter, * ' my health is so bad that I can't recommend my
example, yet I am persuaded it would be much worse if I
did not raise my windows every morning by the first peep
of day. " ^ Often, he was driven by indigestion to a piti-
ably meagre diet ; and how a man with such a delicate
stomach could ever have smoked or drunk madeira it is
hard to see, but smoke he did at some periods of his life,
and drink madeira, with occasional intermissions, he cer-
tainly did down to the last years of his life.
On March i, 1820, he wrote to John Randolph Bryan
that he was confined to a strict milk diet. On December
15, 1827, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough :
'* Quant cL mot, I am dying as decently as I can. For three
days past, I have rode out and people, who would not care one
groat if I died to-night, are glad that I am so much better, etc.,
etc., with all that wretched grimace that grown-up makers of
faces call, and believe to be, politeness, good breeding, etc. I
had rather see the children or monkeys mow and chatter. My
diet is strict, flesh once a day (mutton boiled or roasted), a
cracker and cup of coffee morning and night. No drink but
toast and water. "^
In a letter to Littleton Waller Tazewell, Randolph even
niade fun of his toast and water. Speaking of a little
« J. R.'s Diary. » Garland, v. 2, 91. » Mar. 16, 1808.
4 Feb. 18, 1822, Dr. R. B. Carmichad MSS.
» Dec. 15, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 294.
Randolph as a Man 317
dinner to which he had invited J. M. Gamett, Nathaniel
Macon, and Mark Alexander, he says that he was drunker
upon his toast and water and such thin potations than
they were upon old Jemaikey and Brarzil at $3.00, first
cost, per bottle. **Soyou see," he goes on to say, **that,
although a man of peace, I live like a fighting cock; for
small hominy and water is the chief part of my diet."'
Dtuing the next year, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough
that his breakfast consisted of a cup of tea and a cracker
without butter which he never touched.* In the latter
part of the same year, his stomach was stiU so intolerant
of the slightest excess that he wrote to the same friend:
"Kidder R. [Randolph] was here and had no one to join
him in a glass of claret, so that, as Bums says, I helped
him to a slice of my constitution, although my potation
was very moderate. " ^
During Randolph's life, there was quite a general im-
pression that he was not so infirm as he professed to be.
It was diflScult for skeptical minds to believe that a man
could speak for hours in the House and ride for miles on
horseback over the roughest roads and yet be as mori-
bund as Randolph repeatedly insisted that he was. The
occasion of which we have already spoken when he assured
the FloiuTioys that he was dying, and yet shortly after-
wards galloped up behind them, on his way to Halifax
Court House, where he delivered one of the most powerful
speeches of his career, was by no means a solitary one.
A similar incident was related by Wm. H. Roane, a mem-
ber of the House from Virginia diuing the session of 18 16-
1817, when Randolph's health was so wretched.
** I remember,** he says, *' that one morning Mr. Lewis came
into the House of Representatives and addressed Mr. Tyler
and myself, who were the youngest members from Virginia,
« Mar. 8, 1826, Littleton Waller Tazewell, Jr., MSB.
« Jan. 20, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 284.
' Roanoke, Sept. 4, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 293.
31 8 John Randolph of Roanoke
and said we must go to Georgetown to Mr. Randolph. We
asked for what; he said that Mr Randolph had told him that
he was determined not to be buried as Beau Dawson had been
at the public expense, and he had selected us young bloods to
come to him and take charge of his funeral. We went over
immediately. When we entered Mr. Randolph's apartment,
he was in his morning gown. He rose and shook us by the
hand. On our inquiries after his health, he said: *D)dng!
Djdng ! Dying ! In a dreadful state. * He inquired what was
going on in Congress. We told him that the galleries were
filling with people of the District and that there was consider-
able excitement on the rechartering of the batch of banks in
the District. He then broke off, and commenced upon another
subject, and pronounced a glowing eulogium upon the char-
acter and talents of Patrick Henry. After sitting for sometime,
and nothing being said on the business on which we had been
sent to him, we rose and took our leave. When we got to the
door, I said : *I wish, Mr. Randolph, you could be in the House
today.' He shook his head — 'Djdng, Sir, Djdng!* When we
had got back to the House of Representatives, Mr. Lewis came
in and asked how we had found Mr. Randolph. We laughed
and said, as well as usual — that we had spent a very pleasant
morning with him, and been much amused by his conversation.
Scarcely a moment after, Mr. Lewis exclaimed : 'There he is !'
and there, to be sure, he was. He had entered by another
door, having arrived at the Capitol almost as soon as we did.
In a few moments, he arose and commenced a speech, the first
sentence of which I can repeat verbatim: *Mr. Speaker,'
said he. This is Shrove Tuesday. Many a gallant cock has
died in the pit on this day, and I have come to die in the pit
also.' He then went on with his speech and, after a short
time, turned and addressed the crowd of 'hungry expectants,'
as he called them — tellers, clerks and porters in the
gallery."^
In bringing out Randolph's life-long ill-health, in con-
nection with his infirmities of temper, there is a kindred
subject, which, delicate as it is, we cannot avoid. So far
' Garland, v. 2, 92.
Randolph as a Man 319
as we know, there is no written evidence to establish the
fact that he was devoid of virility at the time of his death;
but that he was so cannot admit of a doubt. The writer
remembers being told by his father, a resident of Charlotte
Coimty, bom in 1826, that in some form or other, the
exact nature of which he has forgotten, one of the physi-
cians who attended Randolph, during his last illness,
commimicated to the world the fact that an examination
of Randolph's sexual organs after his death had demon-
strated his impotence, and was severely criticized by
public opinion for doing so. The writer regrets that his
memory cannot be more specific; but upon the accuracy
of what he does recall the reader can confidently rely.
Moreover, he has recently been told by an aged member
of the Baltimore Bar, of the very highest standing, that
he remembers distinctly reading a letter, written by a
Philadelphia doctor to Walter Jon^s, an ancestor of his,
when Jones was one of the counsel in the Randolph will
litigation, in which this doctor stated that a post mortem
inspection made by him had shown that Randolph's
testicles at the time of his death were mere rudiments.
These facts simply confirm a popular impression which was
universal during the latter part of Randolph's life. Three
times at least during his career did men who had been
exasperated by his satirical eloquence retaliate with more
keenness than decency by hinting at his lack of virile
force. One of these men was Daniel SheflFey, a conspicu-
ous and able member of Congress from Virginia, from
1 809- 1 81 7, who began life as a shoemaker, and is said to
have received on one occasion from Randolph the stinging
advice, Ne sutor ultra crepidam, to which he is said to have
happily replied that *4f that gentleman had ever been on a
shoemaker's bench, he never would have left it,*'^ Just
what SheflFey said in the attack on Randolph, to which we
allude, we can only infer from Randolph's answer. It
« Hist. Colls, of Va., by Howe, 179.
320 John Randolph of Roanoke
was personal enough, however, to incite Randolph, after
he had thrice been prevented by the Speaker from making
the reply that he thought proper, to write to his friend*
T. M. Nelson, another member of Congress, what he had
intended to say, with a view to its passing into general
circulation. The circumstances, imder which he proposed
to hurl his bolt, were a little too suggestive of the indi-
vidual who, despite all that he was in the habit of saying
about the grand way in which his aristocratic ancestors
had lived, had nothing better to display than a paper
sketch of the splendid house that one of them had intended
to build ; and, moreover, the production smells a little of
the lamp ; something that can rarely be said of Randolph's
** profuse strains of unpremeditated art"; but the words
drafted by Randolph are nevertheless pointed enough to
merit free transcription :
"The honorable gentleman, who dives with all the alacrity
of a familiar of the Inquisition into the death-bed thoughts of
other men, has pronounced, with an arrogance unusual even
with him, that I, Sir, am never to be blessed with any of those
pledges of domestic happiness of whose true value he knows
so little as to expose them without regard to the delicacy of sex,
or to the tenderness of infancy (a piteous spectacle), to the
public eye. The honorable gentleman has heard of conjugal
love and therefore, talks about it; but it is plain that he has
never felt that tender and ennobling passion. All his knowl-
edge upon this subject is matter of hearsay, not of feeling; a
cold conception of the head, or the mere impulse of appetite,
and not a generous sentiment of the heart. But, Sir, what
does the honorable gentleman mean? I shall not affect to
misunderstand his gross and beastly allusion, the production
not indeed of twenty years' but of twenty-fotu* hours' 'lucu-
brations.* There is no necessity to strip this obscene figure of
its drapery, for it has not even the covering of a fig leaf. Does
the honorable gentleman mean to boast here in this place a
superiority over me in those parts of our nature which we par-
take in common with the brutes? I readily 3deld it to him.
Randolph as a Man 321
I doubt not his animal propensities or endowments. He has
shown that of the noblest gift of God to man he, with the
wretched disciples of the school of materialism, comprehends
so much, and so much only, as is physical in this compound,
heavenly passion. And is it for him to talk of *filth* thrown
upon his character or his person? And is it for any such man
to pronounce of any language, that has been, or that can be,
uttered on this floor that it is disorderiy or unpariiamentary,
when these lewd and detestable conceptions, that revolt us in
the indignant pages of Juvenal, are not only endured but more
than tolerated, not in the constuprated court of a Tiberius, a
Nero or an Heliogabulus, not in the City of Capreae, or the
Grove of Daphne but in the Halls of an American Congress.
This Sir, is a conflict, (from which I gladly retire) with one of
those animals whose effluvia are as formidable as their other
powers of annoyance are despicable."'
Much less elaborate but more eflFective was the reply
which Randolph has always been believed in Virginia to
have made to another person who sought to cast upon him
the same reproach as Sheffey . * * You pride yourself upon
an animal factdty, in respect to which the negro is your
equal and the jackass infinitely your superior. " Another
assailant who sought to wound Randolph in the same
vulnerable partictdar, was "Julius" (Richard Rush), one
paragraph of whose exclamatory tirade reminds us of the
titter with which James Thomson's ejaculatory line
**0! Sophonisba, Sophonisba, O!"
was greeted when first spoken on the stage. * * The foun-
tain of man's highest transports and holiest affections
was, alas ! unknown to him. O ! heavy malediction. O !
sufficient to have awakened commiseration for his lot,
were it not averted by the sense of his own transgres-
sions."*
» Nathan Loughborough MSS.
' John Randolph at Home and Abroad, by Julius, p. 13.
VOL. II — 21
322 John Randolph of Roanoke
And, in another place, overcome with what he conceived
to be the lack of usefulness in Randolph's career, Julius
breaks out, this time not so infelicitously. "AU, all was
sterility, as if imder his barren star there could be no off-
spring."'
Still another assailant of the same kind was Tristam
Burges, of Rhode Island, who is said to have set down
Randolph in debate on one occasion as ''hated of men and
scorned by women. ** ' (a) Such taunts as these, of cotirse,
belong to a stage of human development when sexual
incompetency was a reproach as well as a misfortune ; but,
now that women are so much on a footing of parity in
every respect with men, it is hard to see why sterility
should be a source of sorrow only to one sex but impotence
a source of shame as well as of sorrow to the other ; to be
resented, when imputed, with the indignation with which
Mrs. Quickly repelled the idea that she was not an "honest
woman."
That Randolph was congenitally impotent, however,
we do not believe. On the contrary, we entertain no
doubt that his want of masculine vigor in his later life was
caused by mumps or some other wasting disease,^ and
that, in his early life, his sexual integrity was wholly intact.
In the discussion of this topic, stress has sometimes been
laid upon the fact that Randolph was beardless ; but was
he beardless? It is certain at all events that, in one of his
communications to John Randolph Clay, he speaks of
having been in the habit of shaving himself when he was
a youth in Philadelphia.-* And so, in the same manner,
significance is also sometimes attached to the fact that he
had a soprano voice. But a feminine voice no more than
' John Randolph at Home and Abroad, by Julius, p. 20.
• The Life of Thurlow Weed, by Thurlow Weed Barnes, v. i, 382.
i The Charlottesville Progress, Aug. 26, 191 8.
♦ Paper headed "June, 1830," and "Memo, of Finances," Clay Papers^
Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 3^3
a feminine face necessarily implies impotence. It is
incredible that a man as incomplete from birth as Ran-
dolph is supposed to have been could have written to a
youthful companion in terms of ardent attachment about
one member of the opposite sex; or have cherished the
deepest gratitude to a friend for extricating him from an
entanglement with another; or should have been told by
a cousin, who had grown up in the same family circle with
him, that he had been in love with her; or should have
actually become engaged to one of the most beautiful
women of his time ; or should have been the subject of an
effort, however feeble, by one of his most intimate friends
to bring about a match between him and a young woman,
or even should have given expression to sensations which
nothing but amorous desire is capable of producing ; yet
all these things Randolph did. When in his eighteenth
year, he wrote to his friend Henry Rutledge: "You well
know my sentiments on a certain subject. They are still
the same. A pin for existence without her; but I will
drop a subject which never fails to demand the tribute of
a sigh. " ^ In the same letter, Randolph said : * * That man
who is possessed of the religion to which I allude, together
with a competent fortune, a sincere friend, a refined feel-
ing, and superior to them all, of an amiable partner of his
affections ; that man, if such a one exists, must be happy. "
A few months later, Randolph wrote to the same
friend :
**I hope, my dear Rutledge, that you have recovered of the
fever by which you were so incommoded when I saw you last.
I am afraid that some cruel fair has occasioned this disease. If
so, I advise you to take courage and hope for the best; or, if
matters are in such a train as not to admit of any hope, to
follow your own advice to me, or rather old Syphax*, which
you quote very aptly, 'Lrct a second mistress light up another
flame and put out this. ' *'^
' Feb. 24, 1791. 'July i6, 1791,
3^4 John Randolph of Roanoke
The inferences suggested by such confidences as these
are too obvious to require comment.
The author of the sketch of Randolph in AppleUm's
Cyclopedia of American Biography, when dwelling upon
his youthful life in Philadelphia, says :
"Among his unpublished letters are several that indicate a
temporary lapse into gambling and other dissipations about
this time; and suggest an estrangement, if not indeed a mar-
riage, in Philadelphia as the explanation of the rupture of his
engagement with the famous beauty, Maria Ward, whose
marriage (to Peyton, only son of Edmtmd Randolph) com-
pleted the tragedy of his private life."'
A tradition to this eflFect has come down in the Tucker
family coimection; and it is even so confident as to de-
clare that the woman was an English woman, and named
Hester Hargrave; but, so far as we know, the only really
substantial and authentic evidence upon this point is to
be found in an unpublished letter from Randolph to his
«
niece.
** You know," he wrote, **that Mr. Bryan and myself were
bound together by the closest ties, but I never told you, and
meant to do it upon paper, what was the basis of the friendship
that made us as one soul and body. I saved him from mar-
riage, when under age, with a woman as beautiful as the morning
who was in the best society in Philadelphia, but whose mother
kept a boarding-house and knew her true character. One
hour more would have consigned my friend to the arms of
infamy. I rescued him at the hazard of my life ; for I am satis-
fied that he would have cut my throat, if I had not established
her falsehood to him. She married that very day the object
of her real attachment, and died an outca^ in a hospital at
Cadiz. My friend forgot, or at least got over, his bojdsh
attachment and, after a second escape from a vixen and
coquette in 1 799-1 800, he went to Europe, returned, and, in
1805, married a beautiful and virtuous woman, the mother of
' V. 5, 178.
Randolph as a Man 3^5
two sons and three daughters who dedicated her widowhood
from 1812 tintil 1826, when she died, to his children. To me
Mr. Bryan rendered a service not precisely of the same but
somewhat analogous nature of which some day or other I will
give you the strange history. He rescued me from a state that
must have driven me to madness ; to worse if possible. I must
end."'
This letter was written five years before Randolph's
death, and, as his affectionate intimacy with his niece con-
tinued until the last scrap of paper, on which he ever
wrote a line, dropped from his nerveless fingers, he,
doubtless, redeemed his promise to her, and, in that way,
handed down to the Grinnans, her descendants of our own
day, the tradition which we have mentioned. There are
few beloved nieces, we imagine, who wotdd not sit in the
lap of a gray-headed uncle, like Vivien in the lap of Merlin,
until she had wheedled from the cells of his memory such
a secret as this.
We have already seen that Nancy Randolph in her
reply to Randolph claimed that he had once made the
approaches of a lover to her; and, if he had been deficient
in the full measure of vital energy at that time, the nature
of her reply is certainly such as to warrant the belief that
she would have been quick to give additional edge to her
cutting words in this connection by at least a veiled
reference to the physical feature of Randolph's body
which, for the purpose of paper battles, corresponded
with the heel of Achilles. In consequence of the disposi-
tion of the true Virginian to adopt the advice that was
given to Uncle Toby by the father of Tristram Shandy
that nothing is so serious as love, much more has been
made of Randolph's engagement to Maria Ward than the
incident really justified. Pretty much all that we actually
know of her is that she was the daughter of Mrs. Benjamin
Ward, of Winterpock, in Chesterfield County ; that she was
> Mar. 27, 1828, Bryan MSS.
326 John Randolph of Roanoke
a superior woman in point of personal charms, intelligence,
and character; that Randolph became engaged to her;
that for some reason the engagement was broken oflf , and
that she became the wife of Peyton Randolph, the son of
Edmund Randolph, Washington's Attorney General and
Secretary of State, and the ancestress of more than one
Uving Virginian who has honorably met the obligations
cast upon him by his descent from her and her husband.
Why the engagement was broken oflE is not known; but,
so far as we are aware, the mysterious and high-flown
innuendoes by which Garland conveys the suggestion
that it was because Randolph was physically disqualified
for marriage are not sustained by any evidence. Our own
belief is that the marriage never took place because rumors
of the affair in which Randolph had become involved in
Philadelphia, that perhaps even represented it as amoxmt-
ing to a marriage, came to the ears of Maria Ward and her
mother (then Mrs. General Everard Meade). To this
belief we are brought not only by the intrinsic probability
of the idea itself under the circumstances, but by a letter
to Randolph from one of his intimate friends, William
Thompson.
** Repose on thy pillow," wrote Thompson, all of whose little
fishes habitually talked like big whales, "and heed not the
shafts that are thrown against you. The world has not
injured me, and it has not despised you. Mrs. M. [Meade]
assured me that in your honor she placed the most implicit
confidence. When you commxmicate with M a, [Maria],
as probably you have already done, she will declare herself
unaffected by this tale which has disturbed your peace. I
have spoken with candor, but I have spoken with truth.
Demand the author and, if he be given up, you will find it a
child. The time of telling it the month of August.
* * Alas, my brother, what are not you destined to suffer ! What
tremendous trials of fortitude have you not undergone ! In the
enthusiasm of friendship, I look forward to your happiness and
Randolph as a Man 3^7
each day brings to life some new pang which is unfeelingly
inflicted. Let not this affair make too deep an impression
on your mind — command my circimistances if they be required ;
for be assured that the mind which personifies irregularity and
want of system in the affairs of the world is nerved to act with
dauntless energy in the cause of my brother."*
Of course, this sort of language is vague, but "the tale, "
to which it refers, hardly points to such a thing as a physi-
cal impediment to marriage. That Randolph, one of the
proudest and least designing of men, should have been
charged by the tongue of scandal with an intended
imposture which was certain of exposure on the very first
night of marriage, and that Mrs. Meade should have relied
upon Randolph's honor to protect her daughter against
such deceit is assuredly an hypothesis, entirely too bold
to be accepted except in the total absence of any other
plausible one. We might add that the conclusion to
which we lean coincides with that which the late Moncure
Conway, a close student of this episode in Randolph's
life, was inclined to adopt.
"Does it not seem," he said, in a letter to the late Joseph
Bryan, of Richmond, "there must have been a previous love
affair when he (Randolph) was in Philadelphia (1790--95), and
that the 'tales' (Garland i, 182) about him may have referred
to some entanglement and been the means of breaking off the
engagement with Maria Ward? The rupture has generally
been ascribed, I know, to a physical cause, but I have always
had doubts as to that."*
And, after all, what more natural than that at the last
moment Maria Ward might have decided, even after "the
tale" had been cleared up, not to marry Randolph because
of misgivings implanted in her mind by his eccentric
character and habits and his ill-regulated temper?
« Garland, v. i, 182. * Jan. 27, 1888, Bryan MSS.
328 John Randolph of Roanoke
That the image of Maria Ward remained lastingly
impressed upon Randolph's mind is certain.
" My situation has been for sometime past (as you know) a
peculiar one," he wrote to Theodore Dudley on Nov. 15, 1807,
which was about seven years after his engagement to her had
been broken off. "The persons (yourself excepted) from
whom I had deserved most highly; to whom I had dedicated
the best years of my life, had withdrawn their confidence from
me. To one of these [Judith Randolph] I had devoted the
prime of my manhood; another (I blush to tell it!) I loved
better than my own soul or Him who created it! [Maria
Ward.] What I merited from the third I will not say. Two
of them had descended to speak injuriously and even falsdy
(as it respected one of these two) concerning me. My heart
was wounded to the very core. These persons have since
confessed that they were under the influence of paltry irri-
tations and that, in their dispassionate moments, they never
felt or expressed a thought that was injurious to me. An
incident, however, of disingenuousness and want of confidence,
the most inexcusable, has lately occurred in one of them, or
rather the knowledge of it occurred to me; for the matter was
of some years' standing.**^
Words like these plainly import reparable injuries, not
irreparable ones founded on physical facts that no expla-
nation or apology could alter. Later on, we shall quote a
still bitterer reference to the disappointment that Ran-
dolph's love for Maria Ward had inflicted upon him.
How deeply his attachment was reciprocated by her we
have nothing but his own testimony to tell us. He is said
to have declared on one occasion : ** I loved, aye, and was
loved again ; not wisely but too well. ** ^ Indeed, we know
that his friend Benjamin Watkins Leigh deprecated the
free extent to which Randolph was in the habit of giving
expression to the gratification that he felt at having once
possessed the love of Maria Ward. As to the true state
* Letters to a Y, R., 76. • Bouldin, 5.
Randolph as a Man 329
of her feeling towards Randolph, we only know, apart
from his own testimony, that it is said by her descendants
that she felt enough interest in him to the last to make up
a package of his love letters to her, and formally, on her
death-bed, to request her executors to preserve them; a
request which it is said that they had too much of the
Virginian squeamishness about the sanctity of private
correspondence to comply with. ' Randolph was so richly
endowed with imagination and sentiment that it is hard
to reconcile ourselves to such a loss. It is barely possible,
of course, that a man, incapable of consummating the
marriage rite, might seek the hand of a lovely woman and
marry her, or, being disappointed of marriage, speak of his
love for her years afterwards in words of glowing passion ;
but reasoning deduced from such solecisms in human con-
duct is so alien to Randolph's character and position in
life as hardly to deserve consideration.
Joseph H. Nicholson was intimate with Randolph in
1 80 1 and, as a member of the House, must have been
brought into the closest contact from day to day with
Randolph's colleagues from Virginia. Surely, if such a
famous man as Randolph even then was had been subject
to sexual deformity from his birth — a. thing that would
certainly have become known to every servant in the
Matoax household, and to every white or negiro boy with
whom he ever **went in washing," as Virginia boys still
say — ^they would have heard of that fact; and Nicholson
too through them. Yet on October i, 1801, we find Ran-
dolph writing to Nicholson in terms which tmmistakably
indicate that Nicholson had selected a certain person as
a proper wife for him who happened to be an object of
desire to some gallant major.
*'You were entirely wrong in your conjecture," Randolph
wrote, *'altho I think Miss M. a fine woman, nay, uncommonly
* Letter from Berkeley Williams to the Author, dated Sept. 5, 1919.
330 John Randolph of Roanoke
so, I could practice without any forbearance the precept of my
schooknaster on this occasion: *Cede majoribus,* and, if you
will excuse the pun, I assure you that *his mayoralty' has
naught to fear from my quarter if his pretensions lie that way.
I would hardly answer as much for his advanced age and some
other little etceteras."'
Scattered, too, through Randolph's letters are expres-
sions that could hardly have dropped from the pen of a
man who did not at least have recollections of erotic
sensations which nothing but Love, the physical brother
of Food, Drink, and Sleep, as well as the spiritual mother
of some of the purest, tenderest, and loftiest emotions of
the human soul, can kindle in the human frame. For
illustration, in a letter to Theodore Dudley, Randolph
moralized in this fashion :
*' Rely upon it that to love a woman as *a mistress,' although
a delicious delirium, an intoxication far surpassing that of
champagne, is altogether unessential, nay pernicious, in the
choice of a wife; which a man ought to set about in his sober
senses — choosing her as Mrs. Primrose did her wedding gowU;
for qualitities that 'wear well. * "^ •
Randolph might have stolen the pipe of Pan, but could
he have sounded a note like this, tmless he had previously
stolen some of Pan's fruitful fire too?
And is it possible that Joseph Bryan, who shared Ran-
dolph's early dissipations in Philadelphia, roomed with
him, and was united to him by ties of devoted friendship,
'*body and soul," to use Randolph's phrase, could have
written such words as these to Randolph about his wife
and the mother of John Randolph Bryan, Randolph's
godson, if Randolph had not been able in his early man-
hood at any rate to feel with Coleridge that
» Oct. I, 1801, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
» Letters to a Y, R,, 252.
it
Randolph as a Man 331
All thoughts, all passions, all delights,
What ever stirs this mortal frame,
All are but ministers of love
And serve to feed his sacred flame."
**YouT facsimile Randolph is said by my wife to be a prodigy.
I can pass no opinion, for my deafness prevents my hearing his
performance. I regret it very much on that account. I can
pass tolerably well in company; indeed, I believe my hearing
is nearly as good as when I was in Washington, but it is not
equal to the small tenor of an infant voice. If you had not
been far removed at a certain period, I should have supposed
the possibility of acting Othello. Come and see him." '
Nor should we forget in fixing the degree of responsi-
bility to which Randolph's infirmities of temper shotdd be
held that his mind was at certain periods of his life posi-
tively deranged ; and at others so nearly so that it was hard
to say whether his mental condition was normal or not;
for rarely has any htmian being ever furnished a more
striking illustration of the saying that great wits to mad-
ness are near allied.
A special study of the manner in which his mind occa-
sionally slipped its cogs might, it seems to us, prove an
instructive task for an alienist. It never crumbled as
something crumbles when it has been slowly decomposed ;
nor did it ever fly to pieces like something that has been
revolved too rapidly. Even at a time after his return from
Russia, when he was manifestly mad, he had the practical
sense to negotiate successfully for the purchase of a tract
of land that belonged to one of his Roanoke neighbors —
Elisha Htmdley.' His conversation was never more
brilliant than it often was when it was perfectly plain to
his companion that his wits were disordered.^ (a) His
» Mar. I, 1812, Bryan MSS.
» Dqx>sitions in Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., Clk's Office, Cir.
Ct., Petersburg, Va.
332 John Randolph of Roanoke
mind seemed to get away from him as a horse sometimes
passes from the control of his rider that begins to gallop
in an entirely natural manner; but, spurred more and
more by the excitement that he generates in his own
nervous system as he moves, finally flies oflf at what we
call a mad rate of speed, which continues until both limb
and wind succiunb to exhaustion ; slowly succeeded in turn
by the restoration of former conditions, (a) Letters have
come down to us that were written by Randolph in all
sorts of mental states ; some when his general conduct was
such as to establish irrefragably his insanity; but it was
only after the adjournment of the Virginia Constitutional
Convention that he lost at intervals his marvelous gift for
terse, vivid expression and fell to chattering like poor
Ophelia. Here is a high-wrought letter to Elizabeth T.
Coalter plainly written when his spirits were unnaturally
exalted, and his eye was glistening with cerebral fever, but
his brain was still serviceably steady :
"Saturday, March 25, 1826.
* 'My DEAR Child.
* * This is possibly the last letter that you shall receive from me
until I am liberated from my prison-house. Nine hours quill
driving per day is too much. I give up all my correspondents
for a time, even your Uncle Henry. I must not kill myself
outright. Business, important business, now demands every
faculty of my soul and body. If I fail, if I perish, I shall have
fallen in a noble cause — not the cause of my country only but a
dearer one even than that — the cause of my friend and col-
league [Tazewell]. Had he been here, I should never have
suffered and done what I have done and suffered for his sake;
and what I would not undergo again for anything short of the
Kingdom of Heaven. You mistake my character altogether.
I am not ambitious; I have no thirst for power. That is
ambition. Or for the fame that newspapers etc. can confer.
There is nothing worldly worth having (save a real friend and
that I have had) but the love of an amiable and sensible woman ;
one who loves with heart and not with her head out of
Randolph as a Man 333
romances and plays. That I once had. It is gone never to
return, and it changed and became — ^my God! To what vile
uses do we come at last! I now refer you to the scene in
Shakespeare, first part of Henry IV at Warworth Castle, where
Lady Percy comes in upon Hotspur who had been reading the
letter of his candid friend. Read the whole of it from the
soliloquy to the end of it. *This (I borrow his words) is no
world to play with mammets and to tilt with lips.' It is for
fribbles and Narcissus and [illegible], idle worthless drones who
encumber the lap of society, who never did and never will do
anything but admire themselves in a glass, or look at their
own legs; it is for them to skulk when friends and coimtry are
in danger. Hector and Hotspur must take the field and go to
the death. The volcano is burning me up and, as Calanthe
died dancing, so may I die speaking. But my country and my
friends shall never see my back in the field of danger or the
hour of death. Continue to write to me but do not expect an
answer until my engagements of duty are fulfilled."^
It would seem that Randolph's mind never became
really demented before the year 1818; though in the very
beginning of his political caree. his bearing was occasion-
ally so peculiar as to suggest the idea to others that it was
unhinged. Nor should the fact be overlooked that Dr.
Samuel Merry testified in the Randolph will litigation
that Randolph was deranged for several weeks at Roanoke
in 181 1 or 1812. ^ Indeed, in that litigation the testimony
of Dr. Robinson, who, however, had formed a personal
grudge against Randolph, went almost to the point of
saying that the latter was out of his mind on each of the
three or four occasions between 18 10 and 18 19 when he
met him. But in 18 18, just after the dreadful attack of
illness which for years afterwards furnished Randolph
with his low water-mark when he was noting fluctuations
in his health, Randolph was certainly not himself. In
« Bryan MSS.
» Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., Clk's oflfice, Cir. Ct., Petersbtirg,
Va.
334 John Randolph of Roanoke
1820, when his extravagant conduct at the funeral of
Commodore Stephen Decatur attracted general attention,
his mental faculties were beyond doubt gravely affected.
In the month of April in that year he walked into the
United States Branch Bank at Richmond and asked for
writing materials with which to make out a check. When
they were given to him, he dipped his pen in the ink and,
finding that it was black, asked for red ink, saying, "I
now go for blood." He filled the check up and asked
Mr. Anderson, the bank cashier, to sign it. Mr. Anderson
refused, and, after importuning him for some time to
change his mind, Randolph called for black ink, and signed
John Randolph of Roanoke, X, his mark. He then called
for the porter and sent the check to a Mr. Taylor's for the
purpose of paying an account. "
"One day," says Mr. Anderson, **I was passing along the
street when Mr. Randolph hailed me in a louder voice than
usual. The first question he asked me was whether I knew of a
good ship in the James River in which he could get a passage
for England, I told him there were no ships here fit for his
accommodation; and that he had better go to New York and
sail from that port. *Do you think,' said he, *I would give my
money to those who are ready to make my negroes cut my
throat — if I cannot go to England from a Southern port I will
not go at all.* I then endeavored to think of the best course
for him to take and told him there was a ship in the river. He
asked the name of the ship. I told him it was the Henry Clay.
He threw up his arms and exclaimed: 'Henry Clay! No, sir!
I will never step on the planks of a ship of that name!' He
then appointed to meet me at the bank at 9 o'clock. He
came at the hour, drew several checks, exhausted his funds
in the bank and asked me for a settlement of his account, say-
ing he had no longer any confidence in the State Banks and
not much in the Bank of the United States; and that he would
draw all his funds out of the bank and put them in English
guineas — ^that there was no danger of them."^
' Garland, v. 2, 137. » Ibid,
Randolph as a Man 335
Testifying in the Randolph will litigation as to the
difference between the insanity of Randolph in 1818 and
1820 and his insanity in 1831 and 1832, Judge Leigh
said:
** There were two previous periods when I had seen him as I
thought out of his mind — the first was, I think, in 181 8 and the
second the summer after the death of Commodore Decatur,
which was, I believe, in 1820. In the first period, his derange-
ment seemed to be an extreme religious excitement, and,
although I believe his mind was disordered, yet I doubt
whether he was then incompetent to manage his affairs or to
make a will. He was during this period remarkably mild in
his manners and seemed most anxious to bring about a re-
conciliation with all with whom he had a difference; and he
was much more attentive to the management of his negroes
and plantation than I ever knew him to be at any other period
before or since. He seemed to have laid aside or mastered all
the asperity of his character, nor do I know, nor have I heard,
that he exhibited during this period any violent passion but
on two occasions. On one of these occasions, I heard he took
offence at a stranger who, at his table, proposed to buy of him
one of his servants who was waiting on the table, and that
then he exhibited the extremity of passion; threatening and
perhaps attempting to shoot the man. Mr. Edward Cabell
was, according to the information I have received, then
present. And, in October in the same year in Lynchburg, he
exhibited violent resentment towards Mr. Christopher Clark.
During the same period, as I have heard and have no doubt, he
used to collect his negroes together on Sunday and read to
them portions of the Bible which he endeavored to explain to
them by verbal remarks. And, during the same period, when-
ever I was at his house, he had prayers, night and morning, at
which his house servants were always present. The disorder
of his mind in 1820 was, in my opinion, much more obvious,
and was of a totally different character — exhibiting at almost
all times angry and vindictive feelings, with few exceptions,
against most of his acquaintances and persons with whom he
had any intercourse. And, during the height of the malady,
336 John Randolph of Roanoke
I did not then, nor do I now, think he was competent to do any
important business. * * ^
Thomas H. Benton testified in the Randolph will litiga-
tion that during the winter of 1821 to 1822 he saw in
Randolph * * indications of high excitement and of imsettled
mind, amoimting as he believed to mental alienation."
The tokens of mental imsoundness, he thought, "were
extreme talking, sleeplessness, and giving imdue, or even
mysterious, importance to trifles. **
**He talked almost incessantly," Benton declared. **I
remember a particular instance of seven hours at a time — from
4 in the afternoon until 11 at night. His talk was always
beautiful and brilliant, but out of place, and too much of it,
and wholly different from what it had been the winter before."*
Benton further testified that, when Randolph returned
from England in 1822, he was **calm, self-possessed, poised,
ever3rthing right, natural, and proper."^ Referring to
Randolph's chronic ill-health, and to his testimony in the
will case, Benton also makes these additional observations
on his sanity in his Thirty Years' View:
"Such life-long suffering must have its effect on the temper
and on the mind; and it had on his, bringing the temper often
to the querulous mood and the state of his mind sometimes to
the question of insanity — ^a question which became judicial
after his death when the validity of his will came to be con-
tested. I had my opinion on the point and gave it responsibly
in a deposition, duly taken to be read on the trial of the will,
and in which a belief in his insanity at several specified periods
was fully expressed; with the reasons for the opinion. I had
good opportunities of forming an opinion; living in the same
» Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., Clk's office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
« Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., Clk's OflBce, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
Randolph as a Man 337
house with him several years; having his confidence and seeing
him at all hours of the day and night. It also on several
occasions became my duty to study the question with a view
to govern my own conduct tmder critical drctunstances.
Twice he applied to me to carry challenges for him. It would
have been inhuman to have gone out with a man not in his
right mind, and critical to one's self, as any accident on the
grotmd might seriously compromise the second. My opinion
was fixed of occasional temporary aberrations of mind; and,
during such periods, he would do and say strange things, but
always in his own way, not only method but genius in his
fontasies; nothing to bespeak a bad heart but only exaltation
and excitement. The most brilliant talk that I ever heard
from him came forth on such occasions — a fiow for hours (at one
time 7 hours) of copious wit and classic allusion — a perfect
scattering of the diamonds of the mind. I heard a friend
remark on one of these occasions: 'He has wasted intellectual
jewelry enough here this evening to equip many speakers for
great orations.' I once sounded him on the delicate point of
his own opinion of himself; of course, when he was in a per-
fectly natural state, and when he had said something to permit
an approach to such a subject. It was during his last visit to
Washington two winters before he died. It was in my room,
in the gloom of the evening light, as the day was going out,
and the lamps not lit — no one present but ourselves — he
reclining on a sofa, silent and thoughtful, speaking but seldom
and I only in reply, I heard him repeat, as if to himself, these
lines from Johnson (which in fact I had often heard from him
before) on 'Senility and Imbecility,' which show us life under
its most melancholy forms:
'* * In life's last scenes, what prodigies surprise!
Fears of the brave and follies of the wise.
From Marlborough's eyes the streams of dotage flow.
And Swift expires a driv'Uer and a show!'
When he had thus repeated these lines, which he did with deep
feeling, and in slow and measured cadence, I deemed it excus-
able to make a remark of a kind which I had never ventured on
VOL. II — 23
338 John Randolph of Roanoke
before, and said: 'Mr. Randolph, I have several times heard
you repeat these lines as if they could have an application to
yourself, while no person can have less reason to fear the fate
of Swift. ' I said this to sound him and to see what he thought
of himself. His answer was: *I have lived in dread of insan-
ity. ' That answer was the opening of a sealed book — revealed
to me the source of much mental agony that I had seen him
undergo. I did deem him in danger of the fate of Swift, and
from the same cause, as judged by his latest and greatest
biographer, Sir Walter Scott.'*'
An interesting note to a part of these words might be
made of the fact that, in a letter to Judge Brooke, Henry
Clay, after his duel with Randolph in 1826, said that the
only thing which had made him hesitate about challenging
Randolph was his misgivings as to Randolph's sanity.*
More than one expression in Randolph's letters bears out
the idea that he carried about with him a brooding fear of
insanity; and, when he had recovered from one of his
spells of mental aberration, no one was more cognizant
than he of what his true condition had been. Dr. Thomas
Robinson testified in the Randolph will litigation that,
when Randolph passed through Petersburg in 1833 on his
way to Philadelphia, he told the doctor that, since the
latter had last seen him, he had been ** stark mad, as well
entitled to a cell in Swift's hospital as anyone who had
ever occupied one"; and **that he felt conscious that he
had not entirely recovered as yet, but confident of ulti-
mate and perfect recovery. "^
In the year 1826, Randolph was again overtaken by the
foul fiend who pursued him (to use his own phrase). It
was in that year that he made the long and multifarious,
though brilliant, and, in some instances, sagacious,
'V.I, p. 473.
* Life & Times of Henry Clay, by Calvin Colton, v. 2, 262.
» Coalter*s Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersbuiig,
Va.
Randolph as a Man 339
speeches in the Senate which helped his party enemies in
the Virginia Legislature to compass his defeat, as a candi-
date for re-election. As usual, his loss of mind was con-
comitant with a very low state of physical health. On
Feb. 27, 1826, he said in a letter : * * The fever and the toast
and water (I touch nothing else) keeps me more intoxi-
cated (exhilarated rather) than two bottles of champagne."
It is a curious fact that, when testifying in the Randolph
will litigation, no recognition could be extorted from John
C. Calhoun of the fact that Randolph had ever been sub-
ject to spells of insanity. The dark future of the South
had been irradiated by several of Randolph's speeches too
wamingly for a man, to whom that future meant so much,
to push Randolph aside as a crack-brained Cassandra.
**Mr. Randolph," Calhoim said, **was generally regarded
as a man of remarkable genius and great brilliancy, with
uncommon sagacity and keenness in debate, and distin-
guished colloquial powers." Calhoim further testified
that he had no recollection of any act or word of Randolph
which induced him to suspect him of insanity, or of such
aberrations of mind, permanent or occasional, as would
incapacitate him to make a will or contract or to manage
his private affairs. The most that he could say was that
Randolph was more excited at some periods than at others;
more so than was usual with most men ; that he was most
excited about the period of the death of Commodore De-
catur (in 1820) and during the discussion of the Panama
Question in the Senate during the session of 1825-26
(when Calhoun presided over the Senate as Vice-President,
and sat as motionless as a figure of bronze or marble, while
Randolph was speaking hour after hour). But Calhoim
also testified that he had never, as he recollected, had
any correspondence with Randolph except in the form
of casual and ordinary notes; that the intercourse be-
tween him and Randolph generally was as a rule not
more intimate than that which usually exists between
340 John Randolph of Roanoke
persons standing in similar official and political rela-
tions, and was, therefore, of a nature to afford him but few
opportunities for observing his peculiar character, temper,
habits of life and deportment towards his personal friends
other than such as were afforded by such relations. '
The dementia of 1826 culminated, during that year,
when Randolph was at sea, on his way to England, in a
scandalous altercation between him and Captain Baldwin
of the packet-ship, Alexander ^ which got into the news-
papers, and, doubtless, did his standing as an United
States Senator no little harm.
One night, the Captain f oimd him upon deck, conversing
with Mr. Matthews, the second mate. In a newspaper
statement, Randolph said that the first intimation that he
had of the Captain's presence was an "abrupt, angry, and
insolent reprimand for violating the discipline of the
ship by speaking to the officer on watch " ; which, with the
proper allowance for a nature that readily magnified
social offenses, was, doubtless, true enough, if Randolph
was not too distracted at the time to remember the cir-
cumstances accurately; for the salt ocean and not rose-
water, as we all know, is the element on which the autocrat
of the quarter-deck sails; and that this sea-dog was as
jealous of his authority as most members of his class is
attested by the fact that, in his newspaper reply to Ran-
dolph, he made distinctly more than he might have done
of Randolph's answer to his threat to make him respon-
sible to him when they got ashore, "Barking dogs do not
bite/* But it is only just to Captain Baldwin to recall
exactly what he had to say about Randolph on this voyage
in his statement; nor ought it to discredit Randolph to do
so; because, on the whole voyage, his manifestations of
mental irresponsibility were such as to remind us with
singular precision of some of the forms that his insanity
* Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
Randolph as a Man 341
assumed during the winter of 183 1 -1832. The Captain
says that, before the Alexander sailed from Newcastle,
Randolph refused to pay any steamboat fare to Philadel-
phia because he had been taken to Philadelphia against
his will ; that this fare was actually paid by one of Ran-
dolph's fellow-passengers **to prevent difficulty or deten-
tion"; that, no sooner had Randolph gained the deck of
the Alexander at Newcastle, than he proceeded to give
vent to the irritation awakened in him by hearing one
passenger ask another whether Mr. Randolph had paid
his steamboat fare; that, when Randolph got to sea, his
querulous disposition manifested itself in such a variety
of ways as to defy description; that it mainly exhibited
itself in contradiction, severity of remark, profanity,
vulgarity, and even obscenity; that, indeed, as regards the
latter, such was his language that the two gentlemen pas-
sengers, who had their families with them, actually desired
the Captain to have a separate table for the ladies in their
own cabin; and that the Captain was obliged to assure
them that, if Randolph did not mend his manners, he
should have another apartment and table for his own
private use. Captain Baldwin, after thus cleverly pre-
venting Randolph from making an isolated occiurence of
his colloquy with him, takes up that incident in these
words:
** Out of such conduct, which was either alienation of mind or
influence of drink, grew the affair on deck, which he (Randolph)
has so generously requested should be taken and judged by
itself without any irrelevant matter. This irrelevant matter is
nothing more or less than general abuse of everything and
everybody. It was his custom to go upon deck late at night,
and there interfere with the discipline of the ship by diverting
the attention of officers, helmsmen and watch; a practice which
neither master nor passengers, as far as my experience goes,
will approve; nor, while I am governed by my present views
of duty to my owners, my passengers and myself, will I
34^ John Randolph of Roanoke
permit. On this occasion, I politely requested him not to do
so, and was treated in the vulgar manner he has publidy
acknowledged. The ofi&cer of the deck afterwards told me he
remained in the precise position I left him for half an hour
with a large hunting knife in his hand ; and I was also told that
he said in the ladies' cabin that but for the presence of the
officer and helmsman he would have ripped the Captain
up.
Captain Baldwin also stated that all his passengers,
except Randolph, expressed their desire, as soon as the
Alexander should arrive at Liverpool, to sign a paper,
declaring their entire satisfaction with his conduct
throughout the affair."
It should be remembered, too, that, even when Ran-
dolph was not actually demented, his mind was often
acidulated by the bitter despondency which frequently
precedes or follows dementia. It was at remote and iso-
lated Roanoke, where there was little to divert his atten-
tion from his physical and mental suffering, where the
dense primeval woods shut in the two rude habitations in
which he lived like prison walls, where the foxes, hares,
squirrels, and hermit thrushes came up fearlessly to his
very windows, and the click of a fly-catcher's mandibles,
closing down on an insect in midair, could be heard on a
quiet stunmer afternoon many feet away, that he was
most frequently a prey to the deepest dejection and the
darkest misanthropy. In the whole range of prose
literature, it would be difficult to find anyone who has ever
played upon the single string of human misery with so
many variations as he does in his letters. In that field of
performance, with his acute sensibility, his fertile fancy,
and his vivid imagination he is a Paganini unapproached
and unapproachable.
Poor Roanoke! seated in a rolling and picturesque
country, on one of the hills overlooking the Staunton
' Niles Reg., v. 7 (3rd Series,) pp. 19-20.
Randolph as a Man 343
River, which Randolph called the Brown Mountains,'
in contrast with the Blue Ridge of his Piedmontese friend,
Francis W. Gilmer, and maintained by an extensive and
fertile estate, it might with a woman's touch, the voices
of children, and the blessings of health have been a happy
home, even though the nearest post-office to it — Charlotte
Court House — ^was 12 or 13 miles away, and Richmond
a three days' journey. Replying to a letter, in which
Randolph had given him a description of his log-cabin
and the forest aroimd it, Francis Scott Key, weary with
the drudgery and the chicane of the bar, said :
"I could not help smiling at the painting you have given
me of Roanoke — laudat diversa sequentes. To me it seemed
just such a shelter as I should wish to creep under,
***A boundless contiguity of shade,
Where rumor of oppression and deceit
Might never reach me more.'"*
But these were not the feelings of a man who was such
a sufiferer that, for a large part of his life, it was impossible
for him to be at peace anywhere. On Dec. 21, 1819,
Randolph wrote to Theodore Dudley from Washington:
"I would be glad to hear something of my affairs at home;
although I left it without a desire ever to see it again. For
the first time in my life, a vague idea of quitting it forever
floated through my mind — one that my engagements will
probably forbid me to execute. I would not leave it
dishonorably."^
Some 16 months later, Randolph wrote to the same
correspondent :
*' You speak of my leaving this place as if it were in my power
to do it at will. Unless I could find a purchaser for it, I must
» Letter to Francis W. Gilmer, Roanoke, July 2, 1825, Bryan MSS.
« Garland, v. 2, 1 1. ^ Letters to a Y. i?., 208.
344 John Randolph of Roanoke
remain a prisoner here, probably for the brief remainder of my
life. Although entirely unable to attend to my affairs, I have
twice mounted my horse and rode down to Col. C's [Carring-
ton*s] and staid all night, being unable to endure the want of
society any longer. ... If I did not fear tiring out the
welcome of my friends, I would go to Amelia for a week or
ten days; (a) and yet the return would be but so much the
more bitter. Use reconciles me to it a little; but the first few
days after I get home are almost intolerable."'
In an earlier letter, he had said to Theodore Dudley:
* * You know the savage solitude in which I live ; into which
I have been driven to seek shelter. " * About the same time
he referred to Roanoke, in a letter to Dr. Brockenbrough,
as his "lonely and savage" habitation; adding that he
led a life of seclusion there unchequered by a single ray
of enjoyment. ^
Repeatedly in his letters to different correspondents, he
compares himself at Roanoke with Robinson Crusoe on
his desert island. In a letter to his niece, he spoke of
himself as a " wild man of the woods " ^ ; (6) and in another
he said: "Here then I must live, and here I must die,
*a lone and banished man. '''^ In still another letter to
the same friend ^ he declared that he remained at Roanoke
and looked at the trees until he almost conceited himself
a dryad. ^ "I vegetate like the trees around me," was
another expression of his in writing to Dr. Brockenbrough.
Even the cool, green crown of these trees, so grateful in a
warm climate, cast only a heavy oppressive shadow over
his spirits; yet, when he returned on one occasion from
Washington to Roanoke, and found that one of his over-
seers had cut down a tree, near one of the two houses in
which he dwelt, he is said to have asked him sharply why
he cut it down ; and, when told because it was in the way
« June 24, 1821, Id., 222. * Georgetown, Feb. 5, 1813, Id., 133,
» Garland, v. 2, 10. * Bryan MSS.
« Garland, v. 2, 130. • Id,, v. 2, no.
Randolph as a Man 345
of the house, to have exclaimed impatiently: "Why did
you not remove the house?"
** You do not over rate the solitariness of the life I lead here,"
he wrote to Theodore Dudley. **It is dreary beyond con-
ception except by the actual sufferer. I can only acquiesce in
it as the lot in which I have been cast by the good providence
of God and endeavor to bear it and the daily increasing infirmi-
ties which threaten total helplessness as well as I may. 'Many
long weeks have passed since you heard from me.' And why
should I write? To say that I had made another notch in my
tally? Or to enter upon the monotonous list of grievances
mentally and bodily, which egotism itself could scarcely bear
to relate, and none other to listen to. You say truly, 'There
is no substitute' for what you name *that can fill the heart.'
The bitter conviction has long ago rushed upon my own and
arrested its ftmction; not that it is without its paroxysms
which I thank Heaven itself alone is conscious of. Perhaps,
I am wrong to indulge in this vein; but I must write thus
or not at all. No punishment except remorse can exceed the
misery I feel. My heart swells to bursting at past recollec-
tions; and, as the present is without enjoyment, so is the future
without hope; so far at least as respects this world."'
We should grow sick of Randolph's incessant repinings
and moans at Roanoke if he did not make wretchedness
such a musical thing ; but how can we get out of patience
with a man who could nm his hands over the whole key-
board of his own unhappiness, from lassitude to loneliness,
from loneliness to misery, and from misery to Stygian
despair, and yet give as melodious an accent to every sigh
or groan as if he were but an academic votary of the tune-
ful Nine singing unreal sorrows?
"My best respects to Mrs. B.," he wrote to Dr. Brocken-
borough from Roanoke in the summer of 1819. '* These glar-
ing long days make me think of her. I lie in bed as long as I
* Roanoke, Jan. 10, 1821, Letters toa Y. R., 219.
346 John Randolph of Roanoke
can to shorten them and keep my room darkened. Perhaps a
straight waistcoat would not be amiss. . . . Farewell. K
we ever meet again it must be here. Should I ever get in
reach of a ship bound to any foreign land, I will endeavor to
lose sight of this forever.*'*
Occasionally, from the mere vacancy of his existence
he would go to bed by seven o'clock in the evening. And
when did the icBdium viUB ever dye a letter more deeply
than it does this one to Elizabeth T. Coalter :
"Roanoke, Oct. lo, 1828.
" My DEAR CHILD,
**I write not only because you request it, but because it seems
to fill up a half hour in my tedious day. No life can be more
cheerless than mine. Shall I give you a specimen? One day
serves, for all. At daybreak, I take a large ttmibler of milk
warm from the cow, after which, but not before, I get a refresh-
ing nap. I rise as late as possible on system and walk before
breakfast about half a mile. After breakfast, I ride over the
same beaten track and return 'too weary for my dinner,' which
I eat without appetite, to pass away the time. Before dark, I
go to bed, after having drunk the best part of a bottle of
Madeira, or the whole of a bottle of Hermitage. Wine is my
chief support. There is no variety in my life; even my morn-
ing's walk is over the same ground; weariness and lassitude are
my portion. I feel deserted by the whole world, and a more
dreary and desolate existence than mine was never known
by man. Even our incomparably fine weather has no effect
upon my spirits."^
As he advanced in life, he fell away from all the pas-
times at Roanoke, one by one, which had given him the
most pleasure at Bizarre and Roanoke.
**I have had a visit from a Struldbug — old Mr. Archibald
B.," he wrote to Dr. Brockenborough in 1827. **It almost
made me resolve never to leave my own plantation again. . . .
> Circa Aug. 22, 1819, Garland, v. 2, iii. * Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 347
I have been obliged to give up riding on horseback altogether.
It crucified me, and I did not get over a ride of two miles in the
course of the whole day. I will stay at home and take your
prescription.'*^
He was not to give up riding entirely yet by any means;
but his zest for it was passing. What, however, was there
to take him out riding, when even on another fine day in
October in the benignant climate of Roanoke he could
bring back no reflections more cheerful than these? After
observing in a letter to his niece that, when a boy, he was a
huge admirer of the poet Thomson, but that, as his taste
had become more chastened, he had revolted at his * 'turgid
pomposity, " he said :
" Neither am I a painter nor a poet ; and Heaven knows I am
not now romantic. Yet, like you, I am an enthusiastic devotee
of nature, and this is my favorite season. If anything could
have aroused me from my lassitude, it would have been the
heavenly weather of the last, my favorite, month [October].
My sole gratification has consisted in admiring the forest
scenery in my solitary rides ; indeed, it is nowhere seen in higher
perfection than from my own door. There is a pleasure in the
pathless woods. . . . The trees are half leafless, and, as they
shed their remaining honors, they forcibly remind me of my
own approaching destiny.***
Long before this, he had complained in a letter to Dr.
Brockenbrough that he had lost his relish for reading.
This last letter is a kind of pot pourri made up of all the
sensations felt by a **soul out of taste*' with the world, to
use a term borrowed by Randolph from the sick when
speaking of their mouths after a fever.
**I am here completely hors du monde,*' he said. **My
neighbor , with whom I have made a violent effort to
establish an intercourse, has been here twice by invitation:
* Roanoke, June 12, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 292.
« Roanoke, Nov. i, 1828, Bryan MSS.
348 John Randolph of Roanoke
W. Leigh as often on his way to court; and, on Saturday, I
was agreeably surprised by stumbling on Frank Gilmer, who
was wandering to and fro in the woods seeking my cabin. He
left on Tuesday for his brother's in Henry. Except my stand-
ing dish, you have my whole society for nine weeks. On the
terms by which I hold it, life is a curse from which I would
willingly escrpe if I knew where to fly. I have lost my relish
for reading; indeed, I could not devour even the Corsair with
the zest that Lord Byron's pen generally inspires. It is very
inferior to the Giaour or the Bride. The character of Conrad
is unnatural. Blessed with his mistress, he had no motive for
desperation.'*^
In later letters, he speaks again of his distaste for
reading and his plantation affairs. **Even Shakespeare
and Milton have lost their empire over me, " he wrote to
Elizabeth T. Coalter in 1822, and then he quotes: ''Still
drops some joy from withering life away.*** On March
31, 1825, he wrote to Francis W. Gilmer that, though
after a journey more toilsome and perilous than a voyage
across the Atlantic, he had reached **his dreary and
desolate habitation on March 22, he had not yet had
strength and courage enough to visit any of his planta-
tions. "* On another occasion, he mentions the fact that
he had not visited his Bushy Forest estate on the Little
Roanoke, which was only about ten or twelve miles from
Roanoke, for some two and a half years. He also lost
heart for the shooting, to which he had once been so
eagerly addicted. **My good friend," he wrote to Dr.
Brockenbrough in 1828, **I am sick, body and mind. I
am without a single resource except the workings of my
own fancy. Fine as the weather is, and has been, all this
month, I have not drawn a trigger."^ In another letter
to Elizabeth T. Coalter, he says :
' Roanoke, July 15, 1814, Garland, v. 2, 42.
> Dec. 29, 1822, Bryan MSS. » Mar. 31, 1825, Bryan MSS.
» Oct. 28, 1828, Garland, v. 2, 311.
y
Randolph as a Man 349
"The face of nature gives plain indication of the approach
of autumn, my once favorite season; but it now comes over me
in shudderings and misgivings. My useless gun hangs over
the fireplace, my dogs in vain invite me to the field in language
more expressive than words, and my horses, like their master,
grow asthmatick from want of exercise."'
Sometimes, as is true of other men when the world is
not served up to them with just the condiments which they
desire, he fancied that he despised it.
"I can no longer imagine any state of things under which I
should not be wretched,'* he wrote to Dr. Brock^nbrough in
1827. "I mean a possible state. I am unable to enter into
the conceptions and views of those around me. They talk to
me of grave matters, and I see children blowing bubbles."'
This letter was written from Washington, but another,
written by Randolph a few years earlier from Roanoke to
the same friend, is in the same vein :
**I have long been indebted to you for your letter by Mr.
Watkins," he said, '* which reminded me of those which I used
to receive from you some years ago, when I was not so entirely
unable as I am now to make a suitable return to my correspond-
ents. I feel most seriously this incapacity and deplore it, but,
for the life of me, I cannot rouse myself to take an interest in
the affairs of this 'trumpery world,* as *the Antiquary* calls it,
and with a curious felicity of expression; for it is upon a larger
scale what a strolling play-house is upon a smaller, all outside
show and tinsel, and frippery, and wretchedness. There are
to be sure a few, a very few, who are what they seem to be.
But this ought to concern me personally as little as any one; for
I have no intercourse with those around me. I often mount
my horse and sit upon him ten or fifteen minutes, wishing to
go somewhere but not knowing where to ride; for I would
escape any where from the incubus that weighs me down, body
« Roanoke, Aug. 25, 1823, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
« Feb. 25, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 288.
350 John Randolph of Roanoke
and soul; but the fiend follows me *ex croupa.* You can have
no conception of the intenseness of this wretchedness, which
in its effect on my mind I can compare to nothing but that of a
lump of ice on the pulse of the wrist, which I have tried when a
boy. And why do I obtrude all this upon you ? Because from
the fulness of the heart the mouth speaketh. I can be and am
silent for days and weeks together, except on indifferent
subjects; but, if I address mjrself to a friend, the misery that
preys upon me will not be suppressed. The strongest con-
siderations of duty are barely sufficient to prevent me from
absconding to some distant country, where I might live and die
unknown. There is a selfishness in our occupations and
pursuits, after the first gloss of youth has worn off, that
hardens us against our fellow-men. This I now know to be
the necessary consequence of our nature, but it is not, therefore,
the less revolting. I had hoped to divert the gloom that
overhangs me by writing this letter at the instigation of old
Quashee, but I struggle against it in vain. Is it not Dr.
Johnson who says that to attempt 'to think it down
is madness'?"^
In 1828, the fiend was still following Randolph ex croupa,
for he wrote to Elizabeth T. Coalter from Roanoke in that
year: ** My excellent friend, Mr. William Leigh, who lay
here last night, left me this morning. Even his presence
seemed hardly to exercise any power over the foul fiend
that annoys me.''^ And, occasionally, Randolph's lan-
guage is that of the blackest dejection. " I shall be found
dead here one of these days like a rat in a hole, '* he wrote
to Elizabeth T. Coalter from Roanoke in 1823.^ But, if
Randolph was more unhappy, on the whole, when he was
at Roanoke than when he was elsewhere, it was only be-
cause at Roanoke he had more time to brood over his
unhappiness and to be dogged by blue devils. There are
letters written by him from Richmond and Washington
that are ftdly as sad and splenetic as any that he ever
« Garland, v. 2, iii. « Oct. 7, 1828, Bryan MSS.
» Oct. 23, 1823, Dr. R. B. Cannichad MSS.
Randolph as a Man 351
wrote from Roanoke. It was from Richmond and not
Roanoke that he wrote to Key in 1 8 14: ** In short, I hope
that there is not another creature in the world as unhappy
as myself."* And it was from Washington, and not
Roanoke, that he wrote to Elizabeth T. Coalter about
Feb. 26, 1823: **Your letters constitute my almost only
resource against the dark spirit that persecutes me."*
It was from Washington, too, that he wrote to Theodore
Dudley : ** I am glad to hear that you spend your time so
agreeably. Mine is spent in unintermitting misery. "3 The
truth is that, despite the forbidding terms in which Ran-
dolph often spoke of the solitude and rudeness of his
Roanoke home and the frequency with which he an-
nounced his intention of living abroad, he entertained
decidedly mixed feelings about the place, even after his
life had fallen into the sere and yellow leaf of an all too
precocious old age. Writing from Washington on Dec.
21, 1 819, he said: **Here I find myself isolS almost as
entirely as at Roanoke, for the quiet of which (although I
left it without a desire ever to see it again) I have some-
times panted; or rather to escape from the scenes around
me."^ Some six years later, he wrote to Elizabeth T.
Coalter: ** Your thoughts on home are beautiful and just.
I, too, have my thoughts on the same subject; although
not the same thoughts. Lonely, and (at times) irksome,
as it is, I wish I could pass my winter at my home^ ; " and,
two days later, he wrote to the same niece that the time
was drawing near for his departure from home and that he
would leave it with great reluctance.^ But what could
more strikingly illustrate the composite nature of his
feelings about Roanoke than this remarkable entry in
one of his journals, under the date of Feb. 21, 1819:
« Garland, v. 2, 36. » Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
i Dec. 9, 1820, Letters to a F. R., 227. ^ Garland, v. 2, 112.
5 Roanoke, Nov. 20, 1825, Bryan MSS.
* Nov. 22, 1825, Bryan MSS.
352 John Randolph of Roanoke
"This day left my wretched and solitary home. Would
it were never to return. Impious wish ! " ' If for no other
reason, he was reconciled at times to Roanoke for the
reasons that he gave to his niece in 1821 :
** I am much obliged to you, my dear, for the kind interest
you express in my comfort, but I have been so much
accustomed to solitude as to have become seasoned to it and
am gradually losing all relish for society, like the poor old man
who, on his liberation from prison, requested to be carried
back to his cell, where he had worn away the best years of
his life."'
The character of the two dwellings occupied by Ran-
dolph at Roanoke, one inherited and the other btiilt by
him, was hardly caladated to endear that place to him as
a home; but he was as scrupulously neat in his care of
them as he was in the care ot his person. "His modest
dwellings, " declared John Randolph Bryan, his godson,
who was frequently imder his roof at Roanoke, in a letter
pubUshed in the Richmond Dispatch on May 20, 1878,
"were more free from everything that could soil a hotise
or yard than any other place I ever saw ; no fowls of any
kind were allowed on his premises ; nor was a horse per-
mitted to graze in his yard; flies shunned the place."
Indeed, they might well have done so, for Randolph had
such an intense aversion to them that we can almost
imagine him, like the Emperor Domitian, giving himself
up in his hours of relaxation to spitting them upon a bod-
kin, (a)
Randolph evidently had a good mSnage at Roanoke,
because on Oct. 9, 1829, when he was in attendance upon
the sessions of the Virginia Convention of that year, his
friend James Hamilton, of South Carolina, lauded Roa-
noke in these terms in a letter to Martin Van Buren :
« Va. Hist. Soc, • Roanoke, July 29, 1821, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 353
" I write yoti from the residence of our eccentric and gifted
friend, where, by the delegated hospitality of his faithftd and
kind domestics, we have been detained for two days. His
whole establishment is so unique that it is worth going a
hundred miles to see; so much simplicity combined with so
much elegance, and with all the most cheering plenty spread
everywhere. I found a mandatory letter from him for me at
[the] court house insisting on my stopping to refresh myself,
children and horses, and greatly have we been recruited by the
comforts of his homestead."^
This letter certainly indicates that there was no lack of
comfort and good cheer at Roanoke. In the Diary, there
are references to fruit trees, butchered animals, and ice,
which tend to show that Roanoke furnished all the cheap
supplies, that, together with the domestic service peculiar
to slavery, did so much to give the old Virginia plantation
its reputation for abundant, if not super-abimdant, hos-
pitality. There are few references in Randolph's writings
to his vegetable garden, but what he had to say in one of
his letters, from which we have already quoted, about his
asparagus, is enough to convince us that he had a good
one ; for asparagus is rarely found occupying a position of
isolated excellence in a kitchen garden, (a) Dr. James
Waddell Alexander says that Randolph never would allow
a carpet to be on his floors at Roanoke ^ but this was a
mistake. At any rate, the Diary shows that he bought
some carpets or rugs at Kidderminster itself on April 15,
1 822, when he was in England. The Diary shows too that
he had a considerable amount of fine silver, and Hugh
Blair Grigsby expressed the opinion that his library was
' * the most respectable collection of pure literature made by
any of our eminent statesmen in Virginia since the Revo-
lution."* His books at Roanoke were what we might
» Oct. 9, 1829, Van Buren Papers ^ Libr. Cong.
* 40 Yrs,* Familiar Letters ^ v. i, 270.
1 South. Lit, Mess., v. 20, 79.
VOL. II — 23
354 John Randolph of Roanoke
expect of a man whose stores of knowledge were derived
from the best books of all ages, and whose intellect had
been so exquisitely educated by them that, even when he
was insane in 1832, there was no fault to be f oimd with the
elegant diction which still flowed from his lips. ^ The only
respects, in the opinion of Grigsby, who had Randolph's
love of books himself, in which the Randolph library was
deficient, was in its lack of scientific works. "
But, all the same, Roanoke must have been in many
regards a bare and sombre place of residence for a man of
Randolph's wealth and social accomplishments; retained
by him only because the Roanoke estate, as he was in the
habit of saying, had never belonged to anyone except the
Red Indians and his ancestors ^ ; and because the burden of
the British debt, which he had inherited in early life, made
it imperatively necessary for him to cultivate habits of
economy so long that when, despite the deceit which
lurked in the value of a slave plantation, he had become
easier in his circtunstances, he f oimd himself more inclined
to absorb the lands of his neighbors around Roanoke than
to build himself a handsome residence, (a) In a letter to
Theodore Dudley, he speaks of this home as their ** little
cabin. "^ On another occasion, he concludes a letter to
Theodore by saying : * * I write this by candle light in our
solitary cabin with the back of the only pen in the
house. "^ This was certainly a sad state of destitution
for a man whose pen was hardly less prolific of words than
his tongue.
Apparently, there was no such thing as a flower garden
or a flower bed at Roanoke. The nearest approach to
anjrthing of the sort, so far as we are aware, is mentioned
in a letter to Theodore Dudley, in which Randolph said :
» Testimony of Wm. Leigh in Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clk's
Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg, Va.
* South, Lit, Mess., v. 20, 79.
* Letter to Josiah Quincy, Richm., Mar. 22, 18 14, Life of Quincy, 350.
^Letters to a Y, R,, 154. * Letters to a Y. R., 179.
Randolph as a Man 355
"Pray plant some Sweet Briar and Swamp Roses'*";
ana;mic flowers which grew wild almost anywhere in
Charlotte Coimty.
Describing Roanoke, with which he was thoroughly
familiar, Wm. H. Elliott, a schoolmate of Tudor Ran-
dolph, says: *'The house was so completely and closely
environed by trees and imderwood of original growth that
it seemed to have been taken by the top and let down into
the bosom of a dense virgin forest. '* ' The fullest descrip-
tion of the place, so far as our knowledge goes, is one given
by Captain Harrison Robinson, of Danville, Va., who did
not visit the spot, however, until six years after the death
of Randolph.
"In 1839, he says, being a student at Hampden-Sidney
College, I visited, in company with several fellow-students,
the residence of John Randolph, of Roanoke. His will being
at that time the subject of litigation, his estate appeared to be
in a condition of neglect. The grounds surrounding the
dwelling were entirely destitute of ornament. The negro,
John, who had been Mr. Randolph's body-servant and con-
stant attendant for many years, received us and showed us the
objects of interest connected with the place.
"There were two buildings, one a log house with two rooms,
the floor raised but a foot or two above the ground, of a style
and material the rudest, and such as belonged to the poorest
class of white persons in the rural districts of Virginia. The
single door opened into the sitting room, which communicated
by an inner door with his bed room. The other building was
a small framed house which stood about twenty yards off, with
large, well-glazed windows, containing two rooms on the
ground floor, raised a few feet above the ground, evidently
built long after the log house, of better material and more
civilized style of finish. John called this his master's 'Sum-
mer House*; the log house his 'Winter House.*
**Entering the log house, we found every article of furniture
remaining exactly (John assured us) as it had been left by Mr.
' Georgetown, Feb. i8, 1817, Letters to a Y. R., 192. » Bouldin, 78.
356 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph at the time of his departure for Philadelphia on his
last journey.
*'At this distance of time, many particulars which then
interested me have escaped my recollection. The furniture,
with the exception of a few articles, was very plain. I recollect
his fowling pieces, pistols, etc., of exquisite manufacture; also
his fair top boots of the best materials and finish. But that
which I recollect with most distinctness, in regard to this
sitting room, was a small, old fashioned mahogany stand, upon
which laid (sic) a plain leather portfolio, a candlestick, and a
half -consumed candle, and one or two books. John informed
us that this stand and what was upon it remained as it was left
by his master when he ceased reading and went to bed, the
night before he started for Philadelphia. One of the books
was open and laid upon the open pages, the back upwards, as
if it had just been put down by the reader. It was a thin
duodecimo volume, bound in discolored sheepskin. On
examination, I was surprised to find this book was McNish on
Drtmketmess. I opened the portfolio and found writing
paper, some blank and some manuscripts in Mr. Randolph's
own handwriting. I recollect particularly a sheet of foolscap
which had not been folded, with the option, 'A List of My
Principal Friends/ followed by a list of names, numbered i, 2,
3, 4, &c., the numbers (if my memory be correct) running as
high as 20. The list covered two or three pages. On the
right hand side of the pages, opposite to each name, or to many
of the names, were remarks indicating Mr. Randolph's esti-
mate of the character of the persons named, or some special
circumstance of his history or friendship. Among the first,
if not the first, was the name of Thomas H. Benton. . . .
"In the bed room we found the furniture generally of the same
simple description. The garments and personal apparel were
in some instances costly and elegant. The room was ill-lighted
and must have been badly ventilated from the small size of the
windows, unless the cracks in the log walls aided in ventilation.
On the wall above the bed, hung a portrait of Mr. Randolph
(in oil). I have forgotten the name of the artist, but the
painting was well done. I distinctly recollect the beardless,
boyish appearance of the face. In the 'Summer House,' we
Randolph as a Man 357
found a library of perhaps more than a thousand volumes,
embracing many of the standard authors of pure 'English
undefiled,* of choice editions and binding; also a number of
fine engravings (without frames) and books and prints of art
and science. I saw no musical instruments. There were
many manuscript letters, notes and cards, invitations to
dinners, &c., which had been received by Mr. Randolph —
some of them from persons of the highest distinction both in
England and America. Doubtless, many of the like kind had
disappeared before our visit; for John made no objection, but
rather encouraged us to take away some of the notes, invi-
tations, cards, etc., as souvenirs of our visit."" (a)
Such was the home of John Randolph of Roanoke, the
owner of 8207^^ acres of productive land in Charlotte
Coimty, Va., assessed at $153,419.12^; of 228 acres of land
in Halifax County, Va.^; of three small lots in Farmville,
Va.^; of 383 slaves of all ages,^ and, in addition to other
farm chattels, of a stud of blooded horses worth perhaps
$30,000. ^ Begrudging of cash balances as the plantation
system may have been, another measure of the profound
despondency, in which Randolph was so often enveloped,
may be foimd in the fact that, though possessed of a total
estate, which could hardly have fallen short in value of
$300,000 or $400,000 — a large f ortime for his day — ^he con-
stantly spoke of himself as reduced to a condition of
impoverishment, (a)
In 1827, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough : **If property
in this country gave its possessor the command of money,,
I would go abroad immediately ; but I feel that I am fixed
here for life."' On another occasion, during the same
' Bouldin, 262.
» List of J. R.'s Real Estate (1833), Charlotte C. H., Va.
i Bouldin, 206.
4 D. B. 26, p. 215, Clk's Oflfice, Prince Edward Co., Va.
* Registration List of N^joes emancipated by J. R., Charlotte C. H.
^40 Yrs.* Familiar Letters ^ by Dr. Alexander, v. i, 270.
1 May 15, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 291.
358 John Randolph of Roanoke
year, he wrote to the same friend : * * There are other reasons
why I should stay at home. I have no clothes and no
money; in fact I never was in so abject a state of misery
and poverty since I was born. " ^ In 1828, he wrote to his
sea-captain friend, West : "I am as poor as a rat. " * And
it must be admitted that his Congressional salary was the
only item of income upon which he could rely with entire
confidence. All his other means were locked up in land
and slaves, and his returns from the one were subject to
many contingencies, and slaves, except in his early life,
when the first pressure of the British debt had to be met,
he would not sell at any price ; though they increased from
year to year with a rapidity which spoke well for his good
management and benevolence. Purchase slaves, however,
he did whenever he needed more.
How his plantation fared imder Jefferson's policy of
wounding our own citizens as often as their enemies
wotmded them, we have already seen. In 1819, the
failure of the firm of Tompkins & Murray, of Richmond,
in whose hands he had a siun of money, caused him to
write to Francis Scott Key: **By the late bankruptcies
I am reduced from ease and independence to debt and
straitened circumstances. I have endeavored, in vain, to
sell a part of my property at a reduced price to meet my
engagements. "^ And then, too, even when there was no
embargo to throw his com and tobacco back upon his
hands, and no general financial depression like that of
1819, and no scorching drouth, he had always, as the Diary
repeatedly shows, to reckon with the malevolent River
Spirit which issued at times from the Staimton and
wreaked its rage on Randolph's fair alluvial plains. In
181 3, he wrote to Francis Scott Key: **We have been
flooded. This river has not been so high since August,
'June 12, 1827, Id., 293.
» Cartersville, Apr. 30, 1828, The New Mirror, v. 2, 71.
i Garland, v. 2, 107.
Randolph as a Man 359
1795. A vast deal of com is destroyed; I fear I have lost
500 barrels and 80 odd stacks of oats."^ On another
occasion, we find him riding about up to his saddle skirts
in a rising flood at his Ferry Quarter, produced by a down-
pour of rain which rendered the bridge over the Little
Roanoke at Mossing Ford impassable, as many another
downpour has done in the author's day.' Indeed, the
caprices of the Statmton River are a thing that can always
be counted upon to keep human existence along its banks
from sinking into a state of stagnation. A remorseless,
copper-colored sky, arid brown fields, twisted com blades,
and sickly, spindling tobacco plants; the rumble of distant
thunder, the heavens slowly knitting their black brows,
the pJay of the forked lightning, the rush of the wind
through the tree tops, the refreshing, reviving rain, more
precious in moderation than any vintage of the wine cellar,
and, on the other hand, the long steady rainfall, unher-
alded by the voice of thunder, or the glare of lightning, or
the wings of the wind, which continues hour after hour
until the hapless husbandman, listening to it, as it falls on
his roof, like clods on a coffin, grows sick and faint with
dismay; how familiar are these phenomena to every
planter who knows what drouth and flood mean on a
Staunton River estate like Roanoke ! (a)
But the profits of planting, even when unaccompanied
by the profits of slave breeding, were not so uncertain that
Randolph, who began with 2796 acres of land, which he
had derived immediately, or mediately, from the estate of
his father, ^ could not end with three times as many.
Bodily and mental depression not only produced in
Randolph disgust with Roanoke, but with his whole
Southside Virginia environment as well. "This desert, '*
he called it in a letter to Theodore Dudley. *
» Roanoke, Sept. 26, 1813, Id., v. 2, 22. « J. R.*s Diary.
1 Letter from H. B. Chermside, Clk., Charlotte C. H., to author, Nov.
II, 191 8. -♦ Letters to a Y. R., 204.
36o John Randdph of Roanoke
"In a few years more," he wrote to Dr. Brodcenbrocigh,
"those of us who are aUve will have to move oS to Kaimluck or
the Massissippi, where com can be had for 6 pence a bashd
and pork for a penny a pound. I do not wonder at the rage
for immigration. What do the bulk of the people get here
that they cannot have for one-fifth of the labor in the westein
country? Surely that must be the Yahoo's paradise, where
he can get dead drunk for the hundredth part of a dollar."'
In 1827, he wrote to Dr. Broekenbroogh :
"You say that 'without something of the sort [cotton spin-
ning] Richmond is done over.' My dear friend, she is 'done
over' ; and past recovery. She wears the fades kippocroHca.
That is not the worst — ^the country is also ruined — ^past
redemption, body and soul — soil and mind. My friend, Mr.
Barksdale, has resolved to sell out and leave Amdia. He is
right, and would be so were he to give his establishment there
away. If I live through the coming year, I too will break my
fetters. He was almost my only resource. They have dried
up one by one, and I am left in the desert alone."*
In a letter to Francis W. Gilmer, Randolph expressed
the opinion that, except Ireland, Southside "N^rginia was
the most neglected cotmtry in the world.* And, in
another letter to Gilmer, he broke out into this gust of
impatience with the same region :
"My friend it will not do to compare the soft flowing
Afton and Guy's Cliff and Warwick Castle and Stoneleigh
Abbey and Kenilworth with our rivers of mud and gullied
plantations: Iticus a non lucendo. For my part, I wish there
was not another point of comparison, from which I wince more
sorely. But, as Mrs. Honour sajrs, 'comparisons are odious,*
and we will drop them. The state of society in this country
is intolerable; a more dreary, monotonous, joyless existence is
not to be found than the life led by the richer part of our
» Garland, v. 2, 15. ■ Roanoke, Nov. 26, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 2913.
i Roanoke, Mar. 31, 1825, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 361
population. I am persuaded that the slaves are happier, for
they have some hours of recreation and merrymaking. Even
music has no charms for their masters, and, for want of some
sensation, whiskey and fanaticism are brought into play. The
last music I heard was from the lips of Miss Stevens.
"I am glad to hear that Mr. K. is 'content with the country.'
I think his delight from his little daughter must have reconciled
him to it. In any view of it, it is incomprehensible to me.
My friends, Mr. Leigh and H. Tucker, have pressed me to go
over our mountains. The hope of meeting Dr. Brockenbrough
and yourself in that dreary country could alone induce me to
encounter its discomforts; to say nothing of those on the road.
Travelling with us is a hard penance. In New Spain and South
America, the traveller finds ample recompense for all his
fatigues and privations in the grand and beautiful features of
the coimtry; but here ***
What are we to think of a Virginian to whom even "the
Valley" had become dreary? In justice to Randolph,
however, we should add that this letter was written after
"deluges of rain" had fiinally destroyed his tobacco crop,
and that, in writing it, he called it a "splenetic effusion, "
a term which could be aptly applied to most of his stric-
tures on Southside Virginia and Virginia at large, for the
reader should realize that the cloud, which Randolph saw
at this time, did not enfold simply Southside Virginia,
but the whole of Virginia, if not the whole of the United
States. Read this extract for illustration, from a letter
written by him to his niece on July 27, 1825:
"I had omitted to notice the mention of my late friend,
the late Col. Wm. Morton. He was one of the last of a race
of men that cannot be found in times like these. Perhaps,
you may think me a querulous old man, praising past manners
and undervaluing the present. So is Tacitus who prefers the
state of manners under the Commonwealth to that which
prevailed under Tiberius and his successors.
* Roanoke, July 26, 1825, Bryan MSS.
362 John Randolph of Roanoke
"The truth is that the paper and land- jobbing systems have
produced an entire alteration in our character. A greediness
to get office, and, having gained, to try with how small a por-
tion of industry and ability in the discharge of its duties we
may hold the place; a shameful exercise of the patronage, thus
derived, in favour of our own connexions — ^these and other
blotches deform the fair face of our society. From being a
lively, hospitable people, fond of music and dancing, we are sunk
into gloom and fanaticisms, and the solitary joys of intoxication
are the chief solace of multitudes.
**The young men lounge and squirt tobacco jtiice and drink
whiskey grog. The young women are too 'serious' to dance
and almost to sing. So that we are sunk down into a state of
joyless and almost monotonous existence that ought to satisfy
no one above a Hottentot. He who has mind or soul must be
revolted at such a state of things. Intellectual enjoyments
there are none. Rational piety has given place to puritanical
jargon; Atterbury and Tillotson and Barrow and Sherlock
and South, [to] N. England sermons and trumpery 'tracts':
meanwhile, the practice of Christianity, of moderation, kind-
ness, charity, has been in the inverse ratio of its high-strained
Calvinistic theory. Mammon is the true idol of our worship.
The heart is with him. I see self-righteous people, who grind
the faces of the poor, drive their slaves to the top of their speed,
take the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, and then abuse their
neighbors for worldly-mindness and want of religion, as if it
were a piece of goods. They talk of getting religion as one
would of getting a coat or hat. These people never think of
those who cry 'Lord, Lord,* or of the people that 'draweth nigh
unto me with their mouth but their heart is far from me.' By
this time you are tired of my sermon; but mark I make no
application.***
On Christmas Day, in 1828, he takes up the same re-
frain in another letter to his niece :
" My dear Child : I am glad to learn that you are cheerful
and happy. This used to be the season of gladness and joy.
» Roanoke, July 27, 1825, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 363
But times are changed now. I am well aware that I have
changed not less, and that no degree of merriment and festivity
would excite in me the same hilarity that I used to feel. But,
laying that consideration aside, or rather, after making the
most ample allowance for it, I cannot be deceived in the fact
that we are an altered people, and altered in my estimation
sadly for the worse. The very slaves have become almost
forgetful of their Saturnalia. Where now are the rousing
'Christmas Fires* and merry, kind-hearted greetings of ^he
by-gone times ? On this day, it used to be my pride to present
my mother with not less than a dozen partridges for an
ample pie. The young people [became] merry and the old
cheerful.
"The principal cause in this change in our manners is a
gloomy spirit of Fanaticism, which, under the name, I will not
say mask, of religion, has overspread our land. The rational
and manly piety of our fathers is scoffed at as hardly better
than downright infidelity, and God is first to be invested with
the attributes of the evil principle before he can be worshipped.
Morality is decried as something superfluous, if not dangerous,
to salvation, and men of the vilest moral conduct are among
the pillars of the Church ; many of them in the pulpit. Our
people, weighed down by their public and private burdens, the
fruits of iniqtiitous legislation and their own improvidence, like
all other nations under oppression, seek in austerities of opin-
ion or practice to propitiate Heaven. This it is that has
peopled the deserts of upper Egypt with solitary ascetics; that
impels the car of Juggernaut, and fills our temples of Belial and
Mammon. Our women, such is the invariable law of this
disease, all of them, to the neglect of their domestic duties,
and many to the injury of their reputations, are running mad
after popular preachers or forming themselves into clubs of
one sort or another that only serve to gratify the love of self-
ishness and notoriety. You judge rightly of the inestimable
value of temper. It is worth all the rest put together. A sour
face may cover a good heart, but its unhappy possessor will
never confer what he does not possess.
*'I need not say that my letters are for no eye but your own.
I have made too many enemies and am more than sufficiently
364 John Randolph of Roanoke
hated already. But the animosity of a detected hypocrite, of
of a dupe, whose eyes you can't open, is beyond measure."*
In 1829, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough in these
sweeping terms:
"As to State politics, I do not wish to speak about them;
the country is ruined past redemption. It is ruined in the
spirit and character of the people. The standard of merit and
morals has been lowered far below 'proof.* There is an
abjectness of spirit that appals and disgusts me. Where
now could we find leaders of a Revolution? The whole South
will precipitate itself upon Louisiana and the adjoining deserts.
Hares will huddle in the Capitol. *Sauve qui peiU* is my
maxim. Congress will liberate our slaves in less than 20
years. Adieu."*
More pessimistic still is a letter written by Randolph
to Dr. Brockenbrough a few weeks later; in which he
quotes a striking passage from one of Macaulay's Essays:
** My good friend: I scratched a few lines to you on Thurs^
day (I think) or Friday, while Ijring in my bed. I am now out
of it, and somewhat better; but I still feel the barb rankling in
my side. Whether, or not, it be owing to the debility brought
on by disease, I can't contemplate the present and future
condition of my country without dismay and utter hopeless-
ness. I trust that I am not one of those who (as was said of a
certain great man) are always of the opinion of the book last
read. But I met with a passage in a review (Edinburgh) of
the works and life of Machiavelli that strikes me with great
force as applicable to the whole country south of Patapsco:
*It is difficult to conceive any situation more painful than that
of a great man condenmed to watch the lingering agony of an
exhausted country, to tend it during the alternate fits of
stupefaction and raving which precede its dissolution, to see
« Christmas Day, 1825, Bryan MSS.
•Jan. 12, 1829, Garland, v. 2, 317.
Randolph as a Man 365
the signs of its vitality disappear one by one, till nothing is
left but coldness, darkness, and corruption.' "'
Not infrequently, when Randolph was at Roanoke, his
melancholy asstuned the form of an intense craving for
htiman society. In 1 821, he wrote to Francis W. Gilmer:
" I yearn to see and speak to somebody who is not indifferent
or distrustful of me, and there are moments, when the arrival of
anyone for whom I feel regard, would give me as much pleasure
as the drawing of the great prize in the Lottery can have
afforded yotu* brother of the robe. ... I sometimes look
towards my gate, not as Sir Arthur Mandotu", who looked out
upon his long, straight avenues, for there is no feeling of ennui
in my case, but with a sense of privation of human intercourse
and a gushing of the heart towards the individual whom I
picture to myself as riding or driving up. If I were a poet in
fact as well as in temperament, I would embody in verse
•feelings that lie too deep for tears.' As I am not, I must
refer you to the Lake School whose productions I never have
read and probably never shall.'**
To his niece the desire for congenial companionship
was expressed with still greater intensity: "At this mo-
ment," he wrote to her in 1823, "I would rather see the
face of a friend than fill a throne ; but I am so unused to
the voice of kindness that it would unman me. "^ But it
was true friends that he wished to see ; not mere curious
strangers, nor mere nati fruges [ant tempus] consumere.
In 1828, he wrote to his niece:
**Had you and your brother been alone, I should certainly
have seen you and spent one day at least with you. But Mrs.
C. is quite a stranger to me. I can hardly bear the gaze of the
multitude, but I shrink from the eyes of those who know me
only by person or reputation. It may be an improper feeling,
« Washington, Feb. 9, 1829, Garland, v. 2, 317.
•Roanoke, Jul. 22, 1821, Bryan MSS.
» Roanoke, Sep. 26, 1823, Dr. R. B. Cannichael MSS.
366 John Randolph of Roanoke
but it is a deeply-seated one. Duty to the kindest of con-
stituents alone could drive me from home. It is a heavy pen-
ance, but light in comparison with carrying my wretched ail-
ments into a private house. . . . Again there are times when
silence and abstraction are as necessary to me as sleep; and yet
I can stop nowhere but at a country inn without being annoyed
by people who seem to think it impossible that a traveller can
be weary, or that he requires rest and refreshment."*
This letter was written trom Washington, but it might
as well have been written from Roanoke. In another
letter to his niece, from which we have already quoted, he
said : * * The people whom I see are made of wood and wire,
and talk like the cuckoos in a Dutch clock, mechanically;
and even such as these I hardly see once a month. " * It
was this kind of people who had caused him to say to his
niece in still another letter, written at Roanoke on a dark
rainy day : * * I bless God that I have a tight roof over my
head, and, if no company, no bore. "^
Nowhere in his correspondence is the distinction which
he maintained between visits from his friends and agree-
able neighbors and visitations from other persons more
clearly manifested than in one of his letters to his niece:
** I have made up my own scheme of life for the few sands
that remain in the glass,** he said. **Here I can have at
absolute command all I want, that is attainable; accom-
modations for my infirmities that I should be unreasonable to
look for abroad, except in an English Inn. Not a soul visits
me; neither do I desire the society of such as are unable to
instruct or amuse me by their conversation, or delight me by
their manners; and where are these to be found? . . . There-
fore, I go nowhere, and give it distinctly to be tmderstood that
I receive none but friends. Of these Mr. Leigh is 20 miles off,
bad road, with a ferry and dangerous ford; Mr. Barksdale
» Washington, Nov. 28, 1828, Bryan MSS.
-Sept. 26, 1823, Dr. R. B. Cannichael MSS.
i Nov. I, 1828, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 367
70, and Dr. B, lOO. So far from being oppressed by solitude,
altho' I acknowledge that I should like a neighbor to whose
house I could ride and take an unceremonious dinner, or who
would partake of my family fare and afternoon pipe and bottle,
... I feel a little alarm when the click of the gate an-
nounces the approach of a stranger. The morning ride, my
afiFairs, my horses and dogs afford me ample occupation, and
over my coffee and wine I look with pity upon this trumpery
world, where my actions are watched and words set down
to be repeated, not always as they are uttered. To this I
except the presence of the very few whose company is not irk-
some to me.**'
Occasionally, of course, when profoundly d la mort
Randolph discharged his bile, as we all are likely to do^
under the same circumstances, in reproaches or even self-
leproach. In 1828, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough :
"For the last month, I have been sensible of a dejection of
mind that I can't shake off. Perhaps some interchange of
the courtesies and civilities of life might alleviate it; but
these are unknown in this region. '*^ Less than a month
later, he wrote again to Dr. Brockenbrough, saying:
** Sometimes, in a fit of sullen indignation, I almost resolve
to abjure all intercourse with mankind; but the yearning
of my heart after those whom I have loved, but who,
in the eagerness of their own pursuits, seem to have
cast me aside, tell me better.'*^ Once, in a letter, he
fell into poetic quotation, as it was easy for him, with a
memory that held everything in its grasp like a spring-
lock, to do, and compared himself with Darius:
"Deserted at his utmost need
By those his former bounty fed."^
« Roanoke, Aug. 18, 1828, Bryan MSS.
•Roanoke, Sept. 30, 1828, Garland, v. 2, 311.
3 Roanoke, Oct. 28, 1828, Garland, v. 2, 311.
* Dec. 6, 1 831, Bouldin, 228.
368 John Randolph of Roanoke
More painftil still, because our self-chastisements are
much more likely to be merited than our chastisements of
others, was the impulse which caused him to declare that
he knew how to win neither love nor esteem.
To ignore, when reviewing Randolph's intemperance of
speech and conduct, such physical pain and debility, and
such mental aberrations as those upon which we have
dwelt, would, obviously, be to violate the simplest prin-
ciples of common justice. Few men, no matter how
happy-tempered originally, could be so continuously har-
assed as he was, body and mind, without a severe loss of
good nature and self-restraint. Moreover, as we shaU
presently see, Randolph's temper was not only jaundiced
by disease, but soiu-ed by domestic misfortunes.
It has also been thought that Randolph's excesses of
temper were due in no little measiu-e to drink ; but we have
positive testimony to the eflfect that drink usually made
him rather good-natured than otherwise. ' * My opinion, "
Judge Leigh testified in the Randolph will litigation, "is
that the eflfect which intoxication produced on him was
to impair his articulation and to render him more good-
htunored. " ' Moreover, we are convinced that Randolph
by no means drank as deeply at any period of his life as
has been supposed; and that the injustice, that has been
done him in this respect, is referable mainly to failure to
properly discriminate between the man, as he was after
his return from Russia, an utter wreck physically and
mentally, and as he was in the earlier stages of his exist-
ence. That he consumed large quantities of spirits and
wine after his return from Russia, there can be no doubt.
On that point, the testimony of Wyatt Cardwell, John
Marshall, Judge Leigh, and Joseph M. Daniel, in the
Randolph will litigation, is conclusive; but even Judge
Leigh testified in that litigation in regard to this period:
« Coalter's Exor. vs. RaoHolph's Exor., Clk*s Office, Cir. Ct., Petersbw:;,
Va.
Randolph as a Man 369
"I do not remember that I saw him drinking to excess
previous to the first week in March, 1832. " For a long
time after his return from Russia, Randolph did not have
mind enough to curb any urgent physical propensity, and,
even if his intellect had not been overthrown, he might
well have craved liquor as he craved opium; simply as an
anodyne with which to lull his unbearable misery to sleep.
Until his return from Russia, he drank very little spirits
of any sort. The only evidence to the contrary, so far as
we know, is that furnished us by James W. Bouldin, who
was a resident of Charlotte County. This is what he says :
** From the first time I ever saw Mr. Randolph to the last —
say from about 1808 or *g till his death — he drank very hard —
groat quantities of all kinds of intoxicating drink. He gener-
ally drank the best, whether wine or distilled spirits; but he
would drink bad if he could not get good.
**This had various and very singular effects on him. Some-
times he became drunk in the ordinary way — ^lost the use of his
limbs, including his tongue, and his mental faculties became
almost entirely obscured. This, however, I presume was
seldom, as I do not recollect of having seen it happen more
than two or three times in all my acquaintance with him.
Generally, the more he drank, the stronger and the more
brilliant he became, until, after weeks, sometimes he would
become suddenly prostrate and sink, and so, after a time, he
would recover.
** Although he drank much in public, he drank still more in
private, and, although this fact was known to so many, yet it
is a matter of great surprise to nine-tenths of persons to be told
that he drank to excess. He scarcely ever drank with the
illiterate or vulgar at all, even during the highest electioneering
times. I scarcely ever saw him drinking with gentlemen, but
he drank more than any of them. Still he had the power of
fascination and charm to such an extent on most men that,
though he drank much, they thought it had no effect upon him.
One of the most talented men I ever knew. General J., told me
he knew that when he boarded with Mr. Randolph, at Craw-
VOL. II — 34
370 John Randolph of Roanoke
ford's, he drank more brandy (fifth proof French brandy)
than any man he ever saw."^
This sounds very specific, but we are told by John Ran-
dolph Bryan that James Bouldin's acquaintance with
Randolph was so limited that he was never in Randolph's
home as an invited guest. In this he was in part mis-
taken, for, in his Recollections, Bouldin states that he
once slept in the same room at Roanoke with Randolph';
nor are references to Bouldin in Randolph's Diary and
other journals lacking. But it is an unquestionable fact
that Bouldin was not on the same intimate footing with
Randolph as either William Leigh or Dr. Brockenbrough,
if on an)rthing approaching an intimate footing with him
at all. This being so, we find it diflficult to accept his
statements in regard to Randolph's habits to their full
extent in the face of what Judge Leigh, who was for years
on the very closest terms with Randolph at Roanoke, at
his own home, and at the homes of common friends of
theirs, with whom they frequently dined together, has to
say upon the same subject under oath in the Randolph
will litigation.
** I do not remember," he testified in this litigation, "to have
seen Mr. Randolph under strong excitement from drinking
spirituous liquors for any considerable period previous to
1831-2 but at one period — namely, the year 1820, the simimer
after Commodore Decaur's death; and I have already stated
in the body of my deposition that I then thought him de-
ranged. . . . Mr. Randolph very rarely drank spirituous
liquors. His drink was principally wine and porter. I do not
now remember that I ever saw him intoxicated from drinking
spirituous liquors before 1831, except in 1820, but on one
occasion — ^at Halifax Court House in the year 1829. On that
occasion, he exhibited no harsh demeanor or irritable feelings.
On that occasion, he seemed to be more good-hiunored than he
» Bouldin, 105. * /J., 1 1.
Randolph as a Man 37 1
usually was. I have seen him at his own house in the evening
intoxicated several times from drinking wine/*
This, it should be borne in mind, was the testimony of
a man who was not only for many years as familiar with
Randolph as any one brother is with another, and enjoyed
throughout life a singularly high reputation as a man of
veracity and integrity, but who was accustomed as a judge
to weigh his words most scrupulously. What he says, it
is true, does not exculpate Randolph from the charge of
excessive drinking at times, but it presents him to us as
not drinking more immoderately than some of his political
contemporaries did without suffering any considerable
amotmt of discredit.
The same observations might be made with even more
force upon the testimony of Dr. John Brockenbrough, who
was one of Randolph's intimate friends from 1807 until
the day of Randolph's death:
"In several instances," he said, *'Mr. Randolph exhibited
very outr6 and capricious conduct in his dress, manners and
conversation; but, even on these occasions, he would converse
with a friend or two in the most rational and interesting man-
ner, and he seemed to understand perfectly what he had said
or done. Such conduct as I have referred to always appeared
to me to be much aggravated when he had taken wine, which
he sometimes took to excess — not that he became drunk, but
much stimulated and excited."
We do not forget what Dr. Lacy said about the amount
of Tum toddy that Randolph drank at Ararat; but Ran-
dolph drank rum toddy there, we imagine, because he had
left all his Madeira behind him at Roanoke. Besides, in
determining whether Randolph drank inordinate quan-
tities of rum toddy at Ararat, we should want to apply
some other standard to what he drank than that of a strict
Presbyterian clergyman, such as Dr. Lacy was. More-
372 John Randolph of Roanoke
over, Dr. Lacy tells us that Randolph did not seem to be
in the least befuddled from what he drank ; and this cer-
tainly could not have been true of such a delicate and
excitable man as Randolph was if his potations had been
very deep. If there is anything certain about drink, it is
that when taken in excess it makes one drunk.
Nor do we forget that Jacob Harvey tells us that on one
occasion when the worthy Captain of the Amity insisted
upon their drinking ''sweetheart and wives" on a Satur-
day, in accordance with the rule, Randolph "became
rather beside himself'*; but he adds, "Not drunk, gentle
reader, but noisy and somewhat oblivious."' Further-
more, as we have already intimated, one of Harvey's
stories is sometimes as much the offspring of the imagina-
tion as of the memory.
Dr. I. B. Rice was also of the opinion "that much of
the irregularity" of Randolph's conduct "proceeded from
disease of body and inebriety. " * For all that his context
shows, however, this opinion may have been based upon
Randolph's habits after his return from Russia.
Moreover, how comes it that James W. Bouldin could
have stated that from the first time that he ever saw
Randolph, which was about 1808, or 1809, until Ran-
dolph's death, he drank "great quantities of all kinds of
intoxicating drinks," and yet be reported by Powhatan
Bouldin as also saying that, during the War of 1812, Ran-
dolph drank but little and he thought only wine?^
Randolph himself has some confessions to make on the
subject of drinking. In a letter written to Dr. Brocken-
brough in 1826, he says: "Now, when too late, I am a
confirmed toast and water man. My convivialities for
15 years (1807 to 1822) are now telling upon me"^; and,
after entering in the Diary on different occasions dinners
at which he had been present at Col. Morton's, Col.
' The New Mirror, v. i, 314. • Bouldin, 114.
• > Id., 21. 4 March 4, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 268.
Randolph as a Man 373
Clark's, Isaac Coles', and James Bruce's, he adds in each
case the word: "Debauch." Such confessions as these
should not be taken too literally. Randolph had a very
delicate constitution and a very emphatic tongue, and, as
we have seen, he could not even drink a little Madeira
with Kidder Randolph without declaring that he had given
him a slice of his constitution. So far as we are cognizant,
there is no evidence whatever that Col. Morton, Col.
Clark, Isaac Coles, and James Bruce were not among the
soberest and most conservative, as they were undoubtedly
among the most conspicuous, citizens and landowners of
Halifax and Charlotte Counties.
Then, too, if Randolph's testimony against himself is
to be weighed, so should his testimony in his own behalf.
In 1822, he wrote to Theodore Dudley:
**I had rather die than drink habitually brandy and water.
Look around you and see its ravages. Thank God it does not
possess any allurement for me! I have sometimes been the
better for a little brandy toddy, but I have not tasted spirits
for six weeks or more; and never shall again but as medicine.
Genuine Madeira is the only thing except good water that I can
drink with pleasure or impunity; not always with the last;
sometimes with neither."^
Later, he wrote to Theodore Dudley :
'* Yesterday (or *on yesterday' as it is said here) I dined out,
and, although I carried (or rather Johnny did) my bottles of
toast and water and milk, I was tortured with indigestion.
My night has been a most wretched one, and all my former
symptoms seem aggravated. I will, however, persevere
throughout this month at least; indeed I feel no great diflBculty
in abstaining — none at all from wine and all fermented and
distilled liquors. The odor of a fine, fat canvas-back some-
times tries my self-denial. Every other strong drink but
wine is now absolutely distasteful to me, and I have no great
propensity to that.'**
' Feb. 5, 1822, Letters to a Y. i?., 251. •Feb. 22, 1822, Jd., 245.
374 John Randolph of Roanoke
Much was made by public gossip of Randolph's famous
call when he was speaking: "Tims, more toast and
water." But Mrs. Seaton, who knew Randolph weU at
Washington, declares that she never saw him affected by
wine. ' Nor could an)rthing be more clear or more direct
than the testimony of Thomas H. Benton, who lodged in
a room next to that occupied by Randolph during the
Congressional Session of 1821-22, and saw Randolph at
all hours of the day and night :
"Love of wine," Benton said, **was attributed to him; and
what was mental excitement was referred to deep potations.
It was a great error. I never saw him affected by wine — ^not
even to the slightest departure from the habitual and scrupu-
lous decorum of his manners."'
Equally to the point is a letter from Mark Alexander,
one of Randolph's colleagues and intimate friends, which
was published in the Richmond Enquirer on Jan. 23, 1827.
After denying that Randolph had used scurrilous language
about one of his fellow-Congressmen, Alexander said:
"My association with Mr. Randolph, under the same roof
for many winters past, enables me farther to state that the
charge of drunkenness is equally unfounded."
But there can be no doubt that Randolph drank Ma-
deira freely throughout his life except at times when ill-
health compelled him to renounce it altogether for a time,
as in 1829.^ ** Peter, " Randolph remarked on one occa-
sion, when his cousin, Peter Randolph, was at his table
at Roanoke, * * You see I have not forgotten how to drink
old Madeira." *'It would be very strange," replied
Peter Randolph, **if one so well versed in the practice
should forget it."^ Aside from the years of Randolph's
life, which followed his return from Russia, and the few
* p. 474. » Thirty Years^ View, v. i, 474.
> Apr. 21, 1829, Garland, v. 2, 322. < Bouldin, 24.
Randolph as a Man 375
occasions on which he became intoxicated before that time,
we suspect that the real extent on the whole .to which he
used intoxicating beverages is pretty well siunmed up in
the letter written by John Randolph Bryan to Robertson,
to which we have already referred.
The idea of his drinking intemperately," this letter sajrs,
has no foundation in fact. He drank wine habitually for the
greater part of his life, but his health afterwards forbade him
to touch it. When he offered us a glass, which he did sometimes,
I have heard him say: 'My son, never spur a willing horse,' as
a caution to us."*
John Randolph Bryan is referring to the period of four
years during which he and his brother Thomas, of whom
we shall have a word to say hereafter, were under Ran-
dolph's roof when they were not off at school.' In a
letter to John Randolph Bryan, written from London after
the latter had married his niece, Randolph adjured Bryan
to have a good apple orchard, and to banish ardent spirits
as a beverage from his table. '*If at the beginning, " he
said, "you are obliged to resort to spirits, let your wife
make the punch or toddy by measure of a certain strength,
never to be increased, according to the good old Virginia
fashion. "^ We can only trust that, when his niece read
this letter, she did not recall the one which her uncle had
written to her about two years before in which he had
informed her that his practice was to go to bed before
dark after having drtmk the best part of a bottle of Ma-
deira, or the whole of a bottle of Hermitage. In 1832, his
habits in this respect were very much the same, because
under date of Oct. 20, 1832, Dr. Ethelbert Algernon
Coleman makes this entry in his Diary just after a visit to
Roanoke: *'He seems very weak, and says that he was
worse from having omitted the usual opiate the night
» Bryan, MSB. • Id, * Dec. 28, 1830, Bryan MSB.
376 John Randolph of Roanoke
before. At dinner, he had retired to his room but a cooler
of wine an<J a wine-glass was carried there. "
The truth is that, though Randolph occasionally re-
nounced the use of wine entirely, or was for a time quite
abstemious in its use, he always had a plenteous supply of
Madeira on hand and consumed it profusely in accord-
ance with the habits of his convivial day. In 1817, he
writes to Dr. Dudley from ' * Babel " : " I have bought a fine
pipe of Madeira. Did Quashia [one of his wagoners]
bring up the quarter cask?"* The Diary evidences the
fact that he bought a hogshead of Madeira in 1803, and
also that, on Oct. 27, 1812, he had 210 bottles, 2 carboys,
and 3 case bottles of Madeira of different vintages.
Opposite to another Madeira entry in the Diary, dated
Sept. 5, 1808, is this dolorous observation : ''Drank in the
past year 10 dozen and 3 bottles. N. B. Very little at
home.** But this wine would seem to have been con-
siuned in Washington, where he was frequently a host.
We also know, through a letter from John Randolph Clay,
to His Excellency, General Bibikoff , that a cask of Ma-
deira which belonged to Randolph, was shipped to him
at St. Petersburg from Copenhagen when he was minister
to Russia. ^
Randolph was fond of saying that we never learn from
the experience of others, but his own success in making
palatable cider was, perhaps, one of the things that led
him to advise John Randolph Bryan to plant an apple
orchard. At any rate, in one of his briefer journals, under
date of March 20, 1830, he mentions the fact that he had
drawn off 104 bottles of cider.
The revivifying effect of a little Madeira on Randolph,
when he was sick and languid, was so great that his guests
must have been quick to condone his resort to it, if it
always produced the consequences described by Dr.
' Jan. 14, 1817, Letters toaY, R., 182.
» Nov. 13, 1830, Clay Papers, Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 377
Robert L. Dabney, the celebrated Presbyterian divine,
in his Reminiscences of John Randolph. '
*'Dr. Wm. Morton," Dr. Dabney says, "was the son of old
Maj. James Morton, of Willington — 'Old Solid Coltimn' —
whom Randolph greatly admired for his steady integrity, (a)
This regard for the father, combined with a certain sympathy
of classical tastes to make the yotmg Doctor a favorite with
Randolph. One day, he received a note from him, written
in terms of exquisite courtesy and elegance, inviting him to
visit Roanoke. The note stated that his adopted son. Dr.
Dudley, and one of the young Bryans were there; that, as his
own health was very bad, he feared the two young men were
having but a dull time, and he wished Dr. Morton to come up
and assist him in entertaining them. He accepted the in-
vitation. He found Mr. Randolph an invalid from his old
chronic diarrhoea, and occupying the small, two-roomed cot-
tage. The young men slept and had their meals in the new
Ubrary building. One morning, the black valet, John, came
in as they were finishing their breakfast and said his master
sent him to invite them, if they felt inclined, to join him in the
little house in his family prayers. Of course, the young men
went over. They found Mr. Randolph looking feeble and
languid, sitting in his large padded arm-chair, wearing the
dressing gown which he had on at his duel with Henry Clay,
and still showing the two bullet holes made by Clay's bullet.
He invited the young men to seats and said: *I hope my
domestics, young gentlemen, attend to all your wants and have
given you a comfortable breakfast. I have taken the only
breakfast my bad health allows me, my crackers and cup of
black tea, and, as this is the time for our family prayers, I am
glad that you join me in them.* He had at his elbow a little
stand supporting the family Bible and prayer-book, and the
domestics about the place had taken their places. Dr.
Morton said that he read the Scriptures and prayers with all
the propriety and solemnity which would have been shown by
old Dr. Moses Hoge, or Dr. Alexander. The young men then
made motions to leave the room, when Mr Randolph said to
' Union Seminary Magazine ^ 1894-95, v. 6, 14-21.
378 John Randolph of Roanoke
them : *My young friends, I know the society of a sick old man
may not be very attractive, but, if you have time to sit awhile,
you will really do me a favor, as I am not well enough to do any
study.' They resiuned their seats, of course, hoping to hear
much of his brilliant and instructive conversation. But he
seemed languid and disinclined to talk. The young men had
to make conversation in which he took but small part. After
a time, one of them mentioned a recent escapade of who
then took occasional but terrible sprees. It was reported in
one of these he had recently become so violent towards his
wife that she felt constrained to flee from her own house at a
dead hour of the night in her sleeping apparel, and take refuge
in the overseer's house. Dr. Dudley commented on this with
severity, remarking that Mrs. was a lady of high family,
of exemplary virtues and piety, and a faithful wife and mother
of his numerous children. Dudley said that the husband, who
could maltreat his own wife under these circumstances, was a
monster, and hanging was too good for him. Here Mr.
Randolph checked him, and, with all the gravity of the most
saintly pastor, addressed him about as follows: *0h, my young
friend, do not be severe; remember the good rule, "Judge not,
that ye be not judged." Doubtless the Wise Being, who
uttered this, had a far tenderer conscience than any of us, and a
far keener disapprobation of all sin; yet he enjoined this as
the rule of charity for us towards our fellow sinners. You
think you see the grossness of *s fault, but probably you
do not know his temptations nor the depth of his repentance.'
This pious rebuke, of course, damped the conversation a little.
After awhile, Mr. Randolph said in a weak and weary tone:
'My infirmities are so extreme that they constrain me to
expedients which I greatly dislike. Without some stimulant,
my weakness becomes a burden greater than I can bear. John,
you will have to give me a glass of that old Madeira.' The
servant took down a bottle of wine from a shelf, and a straw-
stem wine glass, and placed them on the stand beside him.
Mr. Randolph slowly sipped one glass, and, in a few minutes,
it produced a change in him. A faint color came to his pallid
cheeks, his wonderful eyes kindled, he sat more erect in his
chair, his voice lost its languor, and he showed a disposition to
Randolph as a Man 379
take interest in the conversation. The young men were only
too glad to give him the lead. He became animated and
fluent. One racy incident or witticism followed another, while
he filled another glass of wine and drank it. This continued
till he had taken about a half a dozen, and Dr. Morton felt
sure that he was as unconscious of doing so as the habitual
snuff-taker is of the ntmiber of pinches he inhales while his
mind is absorbed. Mr. Randolph became first animated, then
brilliant, and then bitter and profane. His talk rettimed
to 's treatment of his wife, when, forgetting his own
rebuke of Dr. Dudley, he denoimced him as a monster who
should be burned alive. Dr. Morton's explanation was that
his digestive organs were so enfeebled by disease, and so
sensitive that a small portion of wine, such as would have
been entirely temperate for him when in health, produced at
first a mental intoxication under which he at once lost his self-
control and almost consciousness of his own actions."
Of the high temper of Randolph, even when not goaded
by stimuli of any sort, there can be no doubt. **Like
many other men of genius, " Dr. Brockenbrough testified
in the Randolph will litigation, **he was of the irritable in
his temper, and in some cases his feelings seemed to be
excited almost to frenzy. " But we have a new and soft-
ening sense of the strange amalgam, which constituted
Randolph's nature, when Dr. Brockenbrough adds: **But,
even on these occasions, he soon became mild and gentle
towards his friends and would hear any remonstrance from
them against his intemperance; provided there was no
third person present. " * (a)
If an)rthing derogatory to the reputation of Randolph
has been held back by us, we do not know what it is; and
now we assert, without hesitation, that sins of high, and
to some extent bad, temper, and occasional intemperance
aside, the character and conduct of Randolph, when he
' Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., CUc's OflSce, Cir. Ct., Petersbuiig,
Va.
38o John Randolph of Roanoke
was sane, were altogether admirable; and this, too, even
in some respects in which he has been grossly maligned.
All the royal organs of human character, to borrow a
phrase from the old Anatomists, were in him highly devel-
oped. He was unflinchingly courageous; nicely truthful
and punctiliously honorable. How richly, so far as public
integrity goes, he is entitled to a share in the collective
credit which led Lowell to term Virginia the "mother of
States and unpolluted men,*' we have already seen; and
it is hardly necessary to say an)rthing more about his
courage. It belonged to him as naturally as a red comb,
a lively plumage, a pair of sharp spurs, and a death-defying
spirit belong to a game-cock. One day in his early life,
when someone on the streets of Petersburg told him that a
desperado near its market had committed some outrage,
and was refusing to surrender to an officer of the law, he
sought the man out at once and, fixing his eye upon him,
walked fearlessly up to him, laid his hand upon him, and
called out : ' ' Constable, do your duty ! *' "
John Randolph Bryan tells us that Randolph's advice
to him as a schoolboy was that, if he could really forgive
anyone for Christ's sake, always to do so; but never to
mistake the love of God for the fear of man. ^ In one of
his letters to his niece, he said : * * No, my dearest child, I
fear God too much to fear man at all. " ^ If this was not a
veracious vaunt, it was only because few vatmts are
entirely veracious. On one occasion, he goes to Hampden-
Sidney College to hear Dr. Hoge, and then, the same day,
swims the swollen Appomattox River on horseback, as if
the latter thing was as ordinary an occurrence as the
former.^ Frail as he was, he would not have hesitated,
we think, to have backed Bucephalus. Any suggestion
of assistance, when he was handling a restive horse, was
met by him with disdainful impatience. When he was
* Bouldin, 167. • J. C. Grinnan MSS.
» Mar. 30, 1828, Bryan MSS. < J. R.*s Diary.
Randolph as a Man 3S1
almost in the last stages of physical decay, a man offered
to lead his horse over a stream at a difficult crossing.
"No man takes hold of my steed when I am on him,*'
was Randolph's sharp reply. * (a) On another occasion,
about the same time, a horse, on which he was riding, took
fright at a bush. Randolph stuck his spurs deeply into
the animal's sides, and he plunged and reared so madly
that one of Randolph's overseers became alarmed for his
employer's safety, and so expressed himself. **It is as
easy to throw a new girth from a saddle as to throw me, "
was Randolph's proud exclamation ; and he did not cease
to ply his spurs until he had made the horse go up to the
bush. * Such a man as this was certainly speaking with
studied moderation when, after one of the Randolphs had
tweaked Andrew Jackson's nose at Fredericksburg — a
dangerous feat, not imlike that of taking the breeks aff a
Hielander — ^he declared in his last speech at Charlotte
Court House : * * I never could suffer to be imposed upon ;
I cannot permit a man to pull my nose or kick my backside.
I am very far from being clear of the same faults that
Jackson has."^
Speaking of Randolph at the time of his duel with Clay,
when Tatnall was loading his pistols for him, just before
the exchange of shots took place. General James Hamilton
says: **I took his hand; there was not in its touch the
quivering of one pulsation."^ (6) It is to be regretted
that a man of such well-established reputation for intrep-
idity should not have consistently frowned upon duelling,
so far as it was possible for a public man to do so in Ran-
dolph's day. Benton tells us that, at one time, doubtless
during the period of his religious enthusiasm, Randolph
declared that he would neither give nor receive a chal-
lenge; but afterwards, Benton says, he hit upon a train of
reasoning, founded upon analogies derived from public
' Bouldin, 33. * Bouldin, 102. J Bouldin, 187.
< Garland, v. 2, 259.
3^2 John Randolph of Roanoke
warfare, ' which brought him back to the conviction winch
he harbored when he made this entry in his Diary:
"Duelling: A man may shoot him who invades his char-
acter as he may shoot him who breaks into his house.
Johnson, Boswell^s Life.'* The view which this entry
indicates was still held by Randolph, when the Virginia
Convention of 1829-30 was in session; for, in that body,
he strenuously opposed a proposition which sought to
inflict disqualification for public office upon any person
fighting or abetting a duel ; declaring, among other things,
that he had no hesitation in saying that place a man's
honor in one scale, and all the offices in the gift of King
or Kaiser in the other, a man of honor would spurn them
all in comparison with his violated feelings and his violated
reputation. ^ But Randolph, in this connection, at least
deserves the credit of having endeavored to lift the duel
above the level of ordinary affrays, fought without any
regard to decorum or fairness, and to relieve the challenged
party of the obligation to fight any challenger, whether he
had any honor to be wounded, or standing to be lost, or
not. The principles, by which the conduct of Randolph,
in relation to the duel, was regulated, are presented in a
pointed manner in one of his letters to Nicholson :
'* Yotir account of Mr. Wright's death is truly melancholy.
For my part, I always thought of Duelling that [it] is to be
tolerated as a necessary evil (by no means encouraged), and
my opinion on that head remains unchanged. The manners
of the people of our country have certainly undergone a great
change for the worse even within my remembrance. The
character of the country is disgraced by a brutality which
breaks forth very often in the conduct of a duel as well as in
the circumstances which lead to it, but which the fear of such
an appeal does, in some degree, contribute to repress.
Assassinations have become not uncommon in this State since
the act to suppress duelling. Yet, dreadful as the state of
^jo Yrs.* View, 475. * Debates, 782.
Randolph as a Man 383
society is with us, I would not exchange it for the puritanical
manners of N. England. In ordinary cases, I think that man
more to be pitied who kills his adversary than the party who is
killed — but yet I am clear that all that is worth living for
requires that the risk should sometimes be encountered. In
nine cases out of ten, both parties are decidedly wrong — ^fool-
hardy, perhaps; or cowards, at heart, trying to get a name as
fighting men. There is no necessity for a gentleman to meet
such chaps, and the professed duelist is infamous. But there
are cases (I need not specify them ; they will suggest themselves
at once to you) where gentlemen must fight — like gentlemen,
or blackguards.
"Friday, June 29.
'* I have been interrupted, and I dare say you wish that it had
been the means of putting an untimely end to this prosing epis-
tle. As however ours is a weekly post, it gives me leisure to
bare you still further. I have no hesitation (nor would you
either, my friend, if you were brought to the alternative) in
preferring the gentleman's mode of deciding a quarrel to the
blackguard's — and if men must fight (and it seems they will)
there is not, as in our politics, a third alternative. A bully
is as hateful as a Drawcansir: Abolish dueling and you
encourage bullies as well in number as in degree, and lay every
gentleman at the mercy of a cowardly pack of scoundrels. In
fine, my good friend, the Yahoo must be kept down, by
religion, sentiment, manners if you can — but he must be kept
down."'
Randolph's pride in his veracity was like his pride in his
courage — ^instinctive ; repellent of the slightest intimation
of reproach. '*Not that my testimony wants evidence.
I should like to see the man who would question it on a
matter of fact, " were his words when the Missouri ques-
tion was pending, and he was inveighing against the bad
treatment, which he believed that he had received at the
hands of Henry Clay, as the Speaker of the House.*
' Roanoke, June 24, 181 1, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
'Garland, v. 2, 130.
384 John Randolph of Roanoke
Rarely has any man spoken so much and, in language so
much heightened by the lively coloring of the fancy and
imagination, and yet so rarely fallen into inaccuracy or
misrepresentation. Baldwin truly declares: *'He was a
man of a scrupulous and religious veracity in word, apt
and thought.""
In his history of the United States, Schouler says that
Randolph seems to have taken a touch of Indian treachery
and dark reticence of purpose into his nature. ^ (a) This
observation is worthy of one of those academic writers
who cut out their historical figures from paper in forms
to suit their own a priori conceptions. There was not
a trace of treachery or sinister reticence in Randolph's
nature. A man more incapable of intrigue or invidious
finesse in either public or private life, it would be hard to
conceive. In all his words and actions, except when pride
or distrust kept him silent, he was frank, candid, out-
spoken, sometimes almost ridiculously so, as we shall see.
Most conclusively does his whole life bear out the state-
ment of Randall, who was an uncompromising JeflEerson-
ian, and by no means an unreserved admirer of Randolph:
* * He scorned meanness, duplicity or cowardice. His loves,
like his hates, were sincere and vehement."^
Nor was Randolph more courageous and truthful than
he was upright. He was a very honest man with a great
fund of good sense, is the verdict of James Parton, who
was writing just after the Civil War, when it was difficult
for any man. North or South, to see anything except
through the cracked lens of sectional prejudice. We will
not repeat the tributes paid by Randolph's contemporaries
to his sterling integrity both as a public man and a private
gentleman. Nor is there any contradictory testimony
whatever calling for the revision of another conclusion
reached by Randall in his life of Jefferson : * * His integrity
« Party Leaders, by J. G. B., 263. * V. i, 453-454.
*Life of Jefferson, v. 3, 156.
Randolph as a Man 385
was unquestionable."' Indeed, for many years Ran-
dolph led a life of the most rigid self-denial, in order to
discharge his share of the British debt, due by his father's
estate, which would have crushed him, if John Wickham,
the attorney for his creditors, had not given him a long
credit.
**My fortune, such as it is," he once said in a letter to
Tazewell, "is solely due to my own self-denial in not spending
money that I had not, and patiently practicing forbearance,
until I could extricate my own and my brother's estate from
the heavy mortgages that were eating it up. This I awk-
wardly effected. I actually lived in a cabin, covered with
pegged shingles, because I had not one dollar to buy nails,
and would not 'go to the store* for them ; and many a drenching,
the effects of which I now feel, have I sustained in consequence
of the leaky roof when the wind was high. Old Major Scott
[Major Joseph Scott, his manager] came in for a share too."
**Now," he goes on, "I am called upon to educate
orphans and those who are not orphans ; to pension widows
and portion maidens. "* Randolph simply loathed debt.
**Mr. Speaker, " he broke out on one occasion in Congress,
**I have discovered the philosopher's stone! It is this.
Sir : pay as you go ! pay as you go ! " ^ But his pecuniary
prudence went hand in hand with a perfectly sound and
wholesome comprehension of the precise function that
money should perform in a well-ordered life.
**The muck worm whose mind *knows no other work than
money keeping or money getting,'" he wrote to Josiah
Quincy, **is an object of pity and contempt; but I hold it
essential to purity, dignity and pride of character that every
man's expenses should bear a due relation to his means and
prospects in life, and conceive few habits to me more
' V. 3. 156.
'Washington, Feb. 29, 1826, Littleton Waller Tazewell, Jr^ MSB.
5 Life 0} Quincy, 343.
VOL. II— 25
386 John Randolph of Roanoke
destructive of all that is noble and manly about us than a habit
of profusion exceeding beyond all bounds those prospects."'
Could Poor Richard and Benjamin Franklin together
have assigned more judiciously to money its proper posi-
tion in the management of a himian life? Indeed, now
that we speak of Poor Richard, we might recall one of
Randolph's favorite sayings, which is quite in Poor Rich-
ard's manner: "Get the money first and the thing after-
wards/'* The truth is that his long struggle with the
British debt gave him a first-hand insight into the misery
and meanness bred by pecuniary imprudence which no
precepts, imimproved by his own personal experience,
could ever have imparted to him. There are few sager
reflections to be found anywhere than some of his observa-
tions on spendthrifts. After warning Dr. Dudley, in one
of his letters, against a precious scoundrel, he continues in
these words :
**But there is another description of persons, of far inferior
turpitude, against all connexion with whom, of whatsoever
degree, I would seriously warn you. This consists of men
of broken fortunes, and all who are loose on the subject of pe-
cuniary engagements. Time was, when I was fool enough
to believe that a man might be negligent of such obligations,
and yet be a very good fellow, &c. : but long experience has
convinced me that he, who is lax in this respect, is utterly
unworthy of trust in any other. He might do an occasional
act of kindness (or what is falsely called generosity) when it
lay in his way, and so may a prostitute, or a highwayman; but
he would plunge his nearest friends and dearest connexions, the
wife of his bosom, and the children of his loins, into misery
and want, rather than forego the momentary gratification of
appetite, vanity, or laziness. I have come to this conclusion
slowly and painfully, but certainly. Of the Shylocks, and the
smooth-visaged men of the world, I think as I believe you do.
Certainly, if I were to seek for the hardest of hearts, the most
» Life of Quincyt p. 343. • Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 387
obdurate, unrelenting, and cruel, I should find them among the
most selfish of mankind. And who are the most selfish ? The
usurer, the courtier, and, above all, the spendthrift.
'*If I press this subject, it is because (you will pardon me)
I have observed in you, upon it, a sort of perversion of the
intellectual faculty; an apparent absence to what is passing
in the world around you, and an ignorance of the events and
characters of the day, that has caused in me I know not
whether most of surprise or vexation. My terms are strong,
and such as you are in no danger of hearing from the sort of
people I speak of; imless, indeed, you should happen to owe
them money which it is not convenient to pay. Try them
once as creditors, and you will find that even the Shylocks, we
wot of, are not harder. Indeed, their situation enables them
to give the victim a sort of respite which the others cannot
grant."'
The same thoughts are presented in an even more
attractive garb in a letter which Randolph wrote to Dr.
Brockenbrough in 1826:
**I can't help being sorry for that poor man, to whom you
were called the morning you wrote, although he did, some
twenty or thirty years ago (how time passes!), attempt by a
deep-laid scheme of . . ., to beggar a family that I was much
attached to; one, too, with which he was nearly connected,
and that he kept upon the most friendly terms with. His
debts have floored him. It is strange, passing strange.
People will get in debt; and, instead of working and starving
out, they go on giving dinners, keeping carriages, and covering
aching bosoms with smiling faces, go about greeting in the
market-places, &c. I always think that I can see the anguish
under the grin and grimace, like old mother Cole's dirty
flannel, peeping out beneath her Brussels lace. This killed
poor H. H., and is killing, like a slow poison, all persons so
circumstanced, who possess principle or pride. I never see
one of these mart3rrs to false pride writhing under their own
' Washington, Jan. 17, 1822, Letters toa Y. R., 234.
388 John Randolph of Roanoke
reflections, that I am not in some degree reconciled to
the physical fire that I carry in my bosom."'
This letter was written during one of the years when
Randolph's reasoning undoubtedly forsook him, but it is
another illustration of the fact that, even if everjrthing
else, that made him what he was, when in mental health,
deserted him at such crises, his command of pure, nervous
English and his provident turn of mind did not.
Indeed, all of Randolph's instincts were correct and
virtuous and true to the best moral and social traditions
of the race oversea from which he sprang. Who, describ-
ing one of those English types of character, which are as
genuine and sterling as the English watch, or the English
woolens and boots that he wore, could do it better than he
did in this description of Col. Joel Watkins, a man whose
memory still lingers in Charlotte County like the scent of
some fragrant herb about an old-time chest :
''On Sunday, the 2d of January, 1820, departed this life at
an advanced age, beloved, honored and lamented by all who
knew him. Col. Joel Watkins, of the County of Charlotte, and
State of Virginia.
"Without shining abilities or the advantages of education,
by plain and straightforward industry, under the guidance of
old-fashioned honesty and practical good sense, he accumu-
lated an ample f orttme in which it is firmly believed by all who
knew him there was not one dirty shilling.
"The fruits of his own labors he distributed with a prompti-
tude and liberality, seldom equalled, never surpassed, in
suitable provision to his children, at their entrance into life,
and on every deserving object of private benevolence or pub-
lic spirit; reserving to himself the means of a generous
but unostentatious hospitality.
"Nor was he liberal of his money only; his time, his trouble
were never withheld on the bench or in his neighborhood where
they could be usefully employed.
» Feb. 6, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 265.
Randolph as a Man 389
"If, as we are assured, the peace-makers are blessed, who
shall feel stronger assurance of blessings than must have
smoothed this old man's passage to the unknown world?"'
Randolph's training and bias were highly aristocratic,
but his respect was bestowed upon every honest, worthy
man of his acquaintance, however humble his station in
life. In this regard, however, he did not differ from the
other leading members of his class, who had a way in both
peace and war of keeping in close and sympathetic working
relations with the common mass of the whites about them,
whose self-respect and independence of character main-
tained quite as distinct reservations as their own.
Nor was Randolph's esteem for an estimable man any
keener than his reverence for a fine woman, matron or
maid. In 1822, he wrote to Dr. Dudley:
"You know my opinion of female society. Without it, we
should degenerate into brutes. This observation applies with
ten-fold force to young men and those who are in the prime
of manhood; for, after a certain time of life, the literary man
may make a shift (a poor one I grant) to do without the society
of ladies. To a young man nothing is so important as a spirit
of devotion (next to his Creator) to some virtuous and amiable
woman, whose image may occupy his heart and guard it from
the pollution which besets it on all sides. "^
And Jacob Harvey narrates an incident which demon-
strates how careful Randolph was to see that any girl, to
whom this important office was to be entrusted, should
herself not be exposed to contamination :
"I was one morning looking over his books for my own
amusement," says Harvey, "and observed that several of the
prettiest editions were marked *this for Miss ."
"'How is this,' said I? 'Some fair lady seems to have en-
chained you.*
< Bouldin, 81. > Jan. 21, 1822, Letters to a 7. R., 236.
390 John Randolph of Roanoke
"*0h, replied he, if you only knew her; the sweetest girl in the
'Ancient Dominion*; a particular favorite of mine, Sir, and
I shall have all these books beautifully bound in London, Sir,
fit to grace her centre-table on my return.*
**I took up one of them — a volume of old plays — and, after
reading a few pages, exclaimed: 'Surely you have not read
these plays lately, Mr. Randolph, or you could not present
this book to Miss ? It is too lascivious for her eyes.*
**He instantly ran his eye over the page; then took the book
out of my hands and immediately endorsed on the back : 'Not
fit for Bet,* [Elizabeth T. Coalter] and, turning to me, said
with warmth: 'You have done me an infinite service, Sir.
I would not for worlds do aught to sully the purity of that
girl's mind. I had forgotten those plays, Sir, or they wotdd
not have found a place in my box. I abominate as much as
you do, Sir, that vile style of writing which is intended to
lessen our abhorrence of vice and throw ridicule on virtuous
conduct. You have given me the hint. Sir. Come, assist me
in looking over all these books lest some other black sheep may
have found its way into the flock.*
**We accordingly went through the whole box, but found no
other volume deserving of condemnation; much to Randolph*s
satisfaction. He then presented me with several books as
keepsakes; and he wanted to add several more, but I had to
decline positively. His generosity knew no bounds; and, had
I been avaricious of mental food, I might have become
possessed of half his travelling library."'
And like a spotless lily of the valley, modestly lifting
its head above its tuft of green frondage, is the figure of
Marion Coleman as it is presented to our eye by a tender
letter from Randolph to Elizabeth T. Coalter :
"I have just received a letter from Mr. William Leigh
informing me that Marion Coleman is at the point of death.
She is the descendant of my Aunt Murray (great-grand-
daughter) and consequently a relation of mine. Her father
lives just opposite to my Lower Quarter, and she seemed to be
' The New Mirror, v. i, 370.
Randolph as a Man 391
the only person in that neighborhood who felt a lively interest
in my health and welfare. Exceedingly pious, but without
cant, all her friends looked up to her. I was in the habit of
sending little presents to her, and receiving others and kind
notes and messages in return. Hardly a week passed that I
did not receive some evidence of her regard. It was a pure
friendship on both sides. She was the only link in that part
of the world that seemed to connect me with my species. A
purer being never lived. She seemed ever conscious that she
stood in the presence of her Maker, and her heart overflowed
with love for him and her fellow-creatures. She had declined
many matrimonial offers, and devoted herself to her family and
her neighbors. This intelligence sinks my spirits more than I
could have thought.'**
In describing a friend of Delia, the wife of his friend,
Joseph Bryan, Randolph himself resorted to the fair
forms of the flower garden for the purpose of picturing her
as he saw her through the medium of his own refined sen-
sibilities.
**The natural association of Delia with Charlotte," he wrote
to Nicholson, "recalls me to the untimely blight of that 'mod-
est crimson-tipped flower.' Had she lived to feel the ecstacy
of a mother, to hug the dear cause of all her sufferings in her
arms, I could scarcely have regretted her fate. Nicholson, my
friend, when we think on the doom which nature as well as
society has pronounced upon the better half of our race, should
we not rejoice when they are snatched away before they have
drained the bitter cup of neglect and sorrow? You have
sometimes told me that I am romantic; perhaps, at this
moment, I am under the influence of such a sentiment, but I
feel that I could not bewail the lot of a sister of mine taken
from the world before she had tasted of calamity. I should
commiserate myself, her husband and her friends, but for her I
should rejoice."^
« Washington, Feb. i8, 1829, Bryan MSS.
" Bizarre, Nov. 8, 1805, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
392 John Randolph of Roanoke
Nicholson was right when he said that Randolph was
romantic. Could any homage short of that inspired by
some Laura or Beatrice stupass that of the following letter
to his niece ?
** I agree with you entirely about Mrs. Bell, whose manners
are as perfect as her form — and that is faultless. Did you ever
behold such a shape? I never did in scultpure or painting,
although I have seen a cast of the Venus De Medici and a proof
engraving of that of Canova. Her temper, manners and
principles and her whole deportment and conduct through life
have corresponded with that form She has borne the reverses
of fortune, as she ought to have done, with a becoming forti-
tude, which is very different from insensibility or thoughtless
gaiety. She is now called upon, I grieve to say it, to exert still
greater resignation. I feel assured that, under this trial, she
will not be found wanting; which may He, who tempers the
wind to the shorn lamb and binds up the broken-hearted,
in his infinite mercy, grant for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen!
When you see her, make her sensible to my profound re-
spect and sympathy for her.
"She gave me a plant of Citronalis (I hope Mr. G. [Francis
W. Gilmer] has given you a taste for botany) which I fear was
swept away in the wreck. I set out to save it, but had to stop
by the way on account of the weather. If you can speak to
her on such a subject, get another for me and keep it. I will
send lOO miles for it. I had vainly enquired after the orphans
to whom she has been more than a mother. Are they gone
home to their friends in England? They will never find one
like their uncle's wife and widow I must now say."'
It was impossible, of course, for anyone to place woman
upon such a high pedestal as this without having man
grovelling at its base, and a letter from Randolph to his
sister, Fanny Bland Coalter, not only brings out the fact
that he thought Virginia wives entirely too good for their
husbands, but contains some general observations on
marriage that are worth recalling :
« Washington, Feb. 5, 1822, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 393
"Of an ardent and enthusiastic temper in my early day, I
carried my confidence in mankind to a blamable and pernicious
excess. No man ever poured out his whole soul [more freely]
in friendship or in love than your poor old brother.
«ii
And what is friendship but a name?
And love is still an emptier sound !'
A great and good man has said that marriages would be not
less happy if they were made by the Lord Chancellor, without
regard to the wishes of the parties. Now, although I have at
least as much confidence in you as in our citizen Chancellor,
yet I am unwilling you should marry me without marriage
articles stipendiary for separate maintenance. It must be
specially provided that the lady never has fits, except sola,
never at table, and without change of color; and provided the
lady would be satisfied with one house, whilst I occupied
another, part of my objections might be overcome. Take
notice ! this is upon honor and must go no further.
**My dearest sister, long experience has convinced me that I f
anyone of your sex for whom I feel any sentiment of love or
regard may torture me at will; that I lie entirely at her
mercy; and that my whole life must be rendered wretched in
order that she may have daily and visible evidence of her
power over me. When she is satisfied of this fact, she then
commiserates my sufferings and repents her of her cruelty, like
the boy who torments his bird to death and then cries over it;
only to do so again the next time. An unhappy human face
is no very delightful spectacle at any time, but in the power
of a woman, and a woman that one loves, it is agony to behold
it. At the same time, from my heart I believe that the women
of Virginia are the best wives in the world and that, generally
speaking, they are too good for the grog-drinking beasts to
whom they are yoked; but it has been my lot to see two of the
most uxorious of men rendered wretched by the intolerable
caprice and ill-temper of their wives; women who had every-
thing but that one thing needful to recommend them, like the
play of Hamlet, in which the part of Hamlet was omitted,
owing to the indisposition of an actor, and how often have
394 John Randolph of Roanoke
I seen the most amiable and worthy of mankind received with
cold and austere looks, his affection barely tolerated, his
friends slighted, his house that the master would have made
the temple of hospitality cold and repulsive; himself feebly
striving against his situation, and at last sinking tmder it, the
whole man changed, countenance, voice, manners, dress."*
It is to be hoped that this outspoken letter was received
in good part by Mrs. Coalter, whose own letters show that
she had a husband for whom she entertained the most
devoted affection.
Randolph was not insensible to any of the infirmities of
women, much as he was inclined to rhapsodize about them :
''Graces cL Dieu, I make a shift to get along without quite
as many heartaches as I hav^ been made to feel by female
caprice and affectation," he wrote to Theodore Dudley,
shortly after his removal from the home of Judith Ran-
dolph at Bizarre to his own house at Roanoke.* The
ejaculation is evidently a hit at Judith, whom he sincerely
admired and loved, but whose temper occasionally col-
lided with his own and struck off a momentary spark of
petulant impatience. * * To Bizarre ! What a reception ! "
is one entry in the Diary under the date of Oct. 15, 18 10.
"Tantrums of Mrs. R. " is another which he made, appar-
ently, in the year 1809, stopping short with these words
as if Prudence had suddenly laid her finger upon his lips.
In a letter to his niece, he admonishes her to take care of
herself, not by housing and coddling, but by good, warm,
substantial clothing (not fashionable fig-leaf attire).^
In another letter to his niece, he has something to say
about women on whose honor no shade of suspicion could
be cast, and who were notable and not ill-natured in their
families, but whose ungovernable tongues rendered them
more odious and noxious than some of their frailer sisters
' Geoiigetown, Dec. 10, 1812, Bryan MSS.
• Roanoke, Nov. 30, 18 10, Letters to a Y. R., 78.
4 Washington, Feb. 5, 1822, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 395
on whom they would look down with scorn — ^maybe with
compassion.* (a)
**You greatly misunderstand my true meaning," he once
wrote to his niece, **if you suppose that, in decrying the ro-
mantic, I would lean towards the worldly-minded. The silly
girl, who throws herself away on some self -imagined hero, is an
object of contemptuous pity; but the woman, who barters her
person away in marriage, when she cannot bestow her heart, is
in my eyes the most odious object in all nature. No, my child,
so far from seeking to repress, much less extinguish, such feel-
ings as you have poured forth, I would cherish them as the
source of the highest enjoyment which the world can neither
give nor take away. God knows (I take not his name in vain)
that to me they have been the fountain of all that partook of
happiness, and, whenever a gleam of joy passed over my soul,
it is to them alone I am indebted for it."*
*'I concur most heartily in the sentiments you express," he
wrote on another occasion to his niece, **and I have seen such
miserable effects from match-breaking and match-making that
I hold match-makers and match-breakers in greater abhor-
rence than any other species of incendiary, whether in the
shape of old tabbies, their kittens, or certain gossips of the male
kind who are ashamed of their sex and trench upon the privi-
leges of the envious sisterhood."^
This was a singular thing for a man to have said who
was believed by his friend Joseph Bryan to have exercised
no little influence in bringing about the match between
Delia and himself. Decidedly pungent, too, are these re-
flections in one of Randolph's letters to Theodore Dudley :
**The love of power and of admiration (and the last is
subordinate and instrumental to the first) is woman's ruling
passion. Whatever be the affectation of the day it is pushed
« Mar. 6, 1824, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
'Roanoke, Nov. 20, 1825, Bryan MSS.
i Mar. 20, 1824, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
396 John Randolph of Roanoke
to the extreme. Is it timidity, she shrinks from a mouse.
Is it fortitude, she braves Heaven itself."*
But, apart from a few pettish aspersions like these, Ran-
dolph was a staunch champion and a warm admirer of
women, and regarded marriage and all the wholesome
interests that spring from it with a degree of profotmd
approval of which no one without strong domestic affec-
tions is capable.
*'I am reading for the second time," he once wrote to
Theodore Dudley, **an admirable novel called Marriage. It
is commended by the great unknown in his Legend of Mon-
trose, I wish you would read it. Perhaps, it might serve to
palliate some of your romantic notions (for I despair of a cure)
on the subject of love and marriage. A man who marries a
woman that he does not esteem and treat kindly is a villain;
but marriage was made for man and, if the woman be good-
tempered, healthy (a qualification scarcely thought of now-a-
days, all important as it is), chaste, cleanly, economical and not
an absolute fool, she will make a better wife than 9 out of 10
deserve to have. To be sure, if to these beauty and luider-
standing be added, all the better. Neither would I quarrel
with a good fortune, if it has produced no ill effect on the
possessor — a rare case. I was in hopes you would not let G.
[Gilmer] carry off E. [Elizabeth T. Coalter] from you. That
you may soon possess her or some other fair lady is my earnest
wish.
**The cock crows for day, I suppose, but it is yet dark and I
wish you good morning. *It vanished at the crowing of the
cock.*"^
**I am well persuaded," he also wrote to Theodore Dudley,
** that few love matches are happy ones. One thing at least is
true — ^that, if matrimony has its cares, celibacy has no pleasure.
A Newton or a mere scholar may find employment in study; a
man of literary taste can receive in books a powerful auxiliary,
but a man must have a bosom friend and children around him
' Bizarre, Nov. 16, 18 10, Letters to a F. R., 74.
• 5 o'clock, Feb. 4, 1822, Letters to a Y. i?., 249.
Randolph as a Man 397
to cherish and support the dreariness of old age. Do you
remember A. V. [Abram Venable?]. He could neither read
nor think; any wife, even a scolding one, would have been a
blessing to that poor man. After all, 'suitability* is the true
foundation for marriage. If the parties be suited to one
another in age, situation in Ufe (a man indeed may descend,
where all else is fitting), temper and constitution, these are the
ingredients of a happy marriage — or, at least, a convenient
one, which is all that people of experience expect."'
Conunenting tolerantly in a letter to his niece on the
marriage of an old man, he said:
'*I can conceive of nothing so divine as the union between
two souls (and bodies too) and suited to each other in every
respect, and each feeling for the other that sentiment so much
talked of, so little felt, and consequently so little understood,
called Love, which is in everybody's mouth and in almost
nobody's heart. These are the grand prizes in the lottery
which fall to so few that they can hardly come into the calcu-
lation of probabilities. Weak people play the fool on all
occasions, but the wisest men have shown that in this matter
they can play the fool too. It has so happened to me that I
never had a connection or friend who married to please me,
with one exception, and I have found in each instance, save
that one, a woeful falling off in the regard of my married
friends towards me."'
In another letter to his niece, he makes the lugubrious
assertion that even a funeral was as nothing in point of
seriousness to a wedding.^ The marriage of a youthftd
pair, with which he was in any way connected by ties of
relationship or friendship, was always an important event
to Randolph: "Give to the bride and bridegroom my
cordial congratulations on the event," he said in one of
» Washington, Feb. 5, 1822, Sunrise, Letters to a Y. R,, 252.
"Roanoke, Aug. 18, 1828, Bryan MSS.
» Washington, Dec. 15, 1828, Bryan MSS.
398 John Randolph of Roanoke
his letters to Theodore Dudley. "I know not how to
offer them to my worthy old neighbor — ^to whom present
me in the most friendly terms."'
Once, after telling Theodore Dudley that certain per-
sons, including a Mr. W., had made friendly inquiries
about him, he adds: **So did Mrs. W., who is, *as ladies
like to be who love their lords, * and will present him in a
very short time with a chopping boy or girl; perhaps
both. *'^ Some four years later, he wrote to Theodore
Dudley from Roanoke: "I have seen W. M. W. [Wm. M.
Watkins ?] once by accident on the road ; rather I rode as
far as his lane and met him. Asked him to dine with me,
but Mrs. W. was in daily expectation of the sage femtne,
and he was obliged to watch the incubation. '* ^ That rich
vocabulary never lacked a delicate paraphrase with which
to veil or shade any reflection or idea. Nor did Ran-
dolph's interest in marriage cease with the usual harbingers
of matrimonial f ruitf ulness ; as witness this letter to Nich-
olson written just after Mrs. Nicholson had, or was sup-
posed to have, given birth to *'a fine child. "
*' I am not indeed so happy as to be a father, and, perhaps, I
am incapable of entering fully into the feelings of a parent;
yet I am not insensible to any circumstance in which you are
so deeply interested. Nor am I without a strong conception of
what the emotions of a parent, and more especially of a hus-
band, must be on such an occasion. A new object of regard
is created to him, a new tie binds him to the partner who pre-
sents it; it is at once a pledge and source of their affection.
I do not believe that there is a man in the world so fond of
children as myself, and I am unable to account for my having
lived so long without them. There is no object so interesting
to me as a beautiful woman with an infant in her arms, clinging
to her breast.**^
» Dec. 31, 1816, Letters to a Y. R., 181.
•Richm., Mar. 12, 1817, Id., 199.
i Roanoke, June 24, 1821, /(f., 222.
4 Feb. 15, 1800, Nicholson MSB., Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 399
Randolph, of course, had pronounced ideas about the
limits to which the province of womanhood should be
extended. Returning from a concert in 1820, he says to
Dr. Brockenbrough :
**I felt very much ashamed of being there; not because the
room was mean and badly lighted and dirty, and the com-
pany ill-dressed, but because I saw for the first time an Ameri-
can woman singing for hire. I would import our actors, sing-
ers, tiunblers and jack-puddings, if we must have such cattle,
from Europe. Hyde de Neuville, a Frenchman, agreed with
me *that, although the lady was universally admitted to be
very amiable, it was a dangerous example.' At first (on dit),
she was unaffected and sang naturally, and I am told, agree-
ably enough; but now she is a bundle of 'affectations* (as Sir
Hugh hath it) and reminds me of the little screech 'owels* as
they say on *The Southside.* Her voice is not bad, but she
is utterly destitute of a single particle of taste or judgment."*
But Randolph was not one of those early Americans
who was so modest as to think that even the legs of a piano
should be clothed with pantalettes. Ladies, he once
wrote to Theodore Dudley, had, as Theodore knew, no
legs. '
All this brings us back to our first point, that Randolph
had that deep respect, partly inborn and partly inbred,
for pure, good womanhood, without which a human being,
whatever else he may be, can never be a true gentleman.
Reproaching his niece on one occasion for not writing to
him, he said:
" Now that we might interchange a letter every two or three
days, your pen is to me no longer vocal. A surly bachelor
might impute this to female caprice, but I know from experi-
ence that, in that respect, our sex has nothing to boast of over
yours, while, in a great many others, you are far before us.
» Gailand, v. 2, 134.
» Baltimore, Feb. i8, 1816, Lettets to a Y, R., 174.
4^ John Randolph of Roanoke
You are less selfish, capable of stronger and more constant
attachments, and less swayed (whatever satirists may say or
sing) by wealth or power."*
We can readily believe John Randolph Bryan when he
tells us that, in the society of ladies, Randolph's manner
was graceful, magnetic, and deferential to a degree that
made him greatly admired by them'; and the forms of
many beautiful and graceful or benignant women, besides
those of his own mother, sister-in-law and niece and Maria
Ward and the other women whom we have already men-
tioned, are mirrored in his letters. There are, for example :
Delia, a Forman of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, the
wife of his friend, Joseph Bryan, whom he pronotmced
"a charming woman," and whom, like another Cassio,
wooing another Desdemona, for another Othello, he seems
to have courted as assiduously for his friend as his friend
courted her for himself; and Miss Pratt, another ''Eastern
Shore belle," whom he declared to be as amiable and
accomplished as Delia. ^
*' I do not know how it is," he once wrote to Nicholson, an
Eastern Shoreman, "that your State, and particularly your
side of the Bay (to which we must annex Annapolis) shines in
fine women. There is a marked character of excellence in their
manners which is seldom seen elsewhere, at least out of Vir-
ginia. You see there is no combatting State prejudices."^
But, however sectional Randolph may have been in
other respects, there was nothing sectional in the devoirs
that he paid to attractive women, who, even in the darkest
days of sectional discord, had a way peculiar to them-
selves of setting aside geographical, as well as other,
barriers created by the passions or whims of men. One
' Jan. 31, 1824, Dr. R. B. Cannichael MSS.
« Mar. 27, 1878, Letter to Mr. Robertson, Bryan MSS.
J Letter to Nicholson, Bizarre, July i, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr Cong.
*Ibid.
Randolph as a Man 401
of the most agreeable passages in that agreeable book,
Figures of the Past, by Josiah Quincy, is that in which he
tells us how fervently Randolph extolled in his presence
the charms and virtues of a Boston lady (doubtless Mrs.
Christopher Gore). What he said, Quincy declares, could
be compared only to the rhapsody of a lover. ' When this
lady was on one occasion en route from Washington to
New England, he wrote repeatedly to Theodore Dudley,
who was then a medical student in Philadelphia, urging
him not to let her and her husband pass through Phila-
phia without seeing them. In one letter to Dudley, who
had become a capital sportsman at Bizarre and Roanoke,
he said: **I hope you will not miss them in their passage
through Philadelphia. You are good at a flying shot. "*
But he never paid Mrs. Gore a handsomer compliment
than just after his defeat in 1813, when he might well have
felt its smart too keenly not to have been thinking of the
ingratitude of men to the utter exclusion of the blandish-
ments of women. "It releases me from an odious thral-
dom," he wrote to Dudley, "and I assure you, my dear
Theodore, I have thought, and yet think, much more of
the charming Mrs. G. than of the election."* Not so
heartfelt, however, was this declaration as one which he
made to Dr. Brockenbrough when he heard that Mrs.
Brockenbrough had been deeply affected by his defeat in
1827. The tear shed by her eyes, he said, was more
precious in his own than the pearl of Cleopatra. ^ Other
captivating Maryland women besides Delia and Miss
Pratt won his admiration. "Tell Mrs. G., " he wrote to
Theodore Dudley on one occasion, "that her friends, the
Goldsboroughs [of Maryland], are quite well; that Miss
Anna Maria is as beautiful as ever. *' * In the same letter,
« p. 21 1. « Washington, Feb. 1 1, 1813, Letters toaY. R., 137.
J Farmville, Apr. 16, 181 3, /rf., 141.
* Jan. 20, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 284.
« Feb. 10, 1813, Letters to a Y R., 136.
VOL. 11—26
402 John Randolph of Roanoke
he says: *'Mrs. Horsey, with whom I dined today, and
Mrs. Bayard enjoy their usual good health, good humor
and good spirits. " In another place, he speaks of Anna
Maria, who afterwards became the wife of Wm. Fitzhugh,
of Virginia, as **La Belle Goldsborough. " ' After a visit
to Nicholson on the Eastern Shore of Maryland in 1801,
he asks Nicholson, when he sees Mrs. Lloyd, or the yotmg
ladies, or his charming relation. Miss M., to present him
to them in Nicholson's best manner; and then he adds:
' * The sweet notes of ' Lucy * still vibrate in my ear. " '
In many cases, Randolph's habit of initialing proper
names in his letters is not a matter of much concern to us ;
but at times his letters are so profusely besprinkled with
such initials that we feel as if we were moving about at a
masked ball.
A Maryland **Miss," mentioned by Randolph in his
letters, is one of the three Catons, granddaughters of
Charles Carroll of Carrollton, who afterwards married
respectively, the Earl of Stafford, the Duke of I^eeds, and
the Marquis of Wellesley. ^
How necessary the society of women was to Randolph,
we may partially infer from a letter which he wrote to his
niece in the year 1823 :
*' You describe," he said, **that to which I have been for
many months a perfect stranger — ^refined female society. My
infirmities have disabled me for evening parties, and indeed
those of Washington are so crowded and promiscuous that
little enjoyment can be derived from them. Mrs. Decatur, I
am told, has a small, select company assembled at her house
once or twice a week, but it is four miles off, and I have not
seen her since poor Decatur's death. I called last year as soon
as I understood she received company, but she had not the
courage to see me, and, to say the truth, I was not sorry to be
» Richmond, Mar. 20, 1814, /(f., 157.
« Bizarre, July 18, 1801, Nicholson MSB., Libr. Cong.
» Richm., Mar. 20, 1814, letters toa Y. R.^ 156.
Randolph as a Man 403
spared the interview. I have not the pleasure to know the
Mrs. N. you mention, although I am well acquainted with her
father and slightly with her husband. We have a very
sensible and agreeable lady in this house (Mrs. Benton) but
we see very little of her; her time, when she is not abroad, being
engrossed by a charming little girl not quite a year old. I
sometimes meet Miss Spear upon the walk before our door.
She is a very intelligent, well-informed and well-bred woman,
and I find in our interviews of lo or 12 minutes' promenade
much entertainment. Do you ever see my old friend Mrs.
Cunningham? When you do, pray present my best respects
to her. I verily believe that I owe my life to her and her
husband's kindness six years ago when I was ill at their
house."* (a)
Mrs. H., **a most charming woman, '* and "pretty Mrs.
W. " are two other women whom he mentions in one of his
letters to Theodore Dudley.^ To Mrs. Cimningham he
was not more grateful than he was to the daughter of
Philip Barton Key for nursing him in his sickness, and to
her he paid this cordial tribute in a letter to her cousin,
Francis Scott Key :
**Miss Key (your Uncle Philip's daughter) is I presimie
'immarried,'" he said, **for there was nobody in the District
deserving of her when I knew it; and she has too much good
sense to throw herself away on flimsy members of Congress or
diplomatic adventurers. I often think of the pain I suffered
at her father's more than 1 1 years ago, of the kindness and
attention I then received. Cripple as I then thought myself,
I had no forecast that in so short a time I should be almost
superannuated. * * ^
Nor should we by any means omit a paragraph from one
of his letters to Theodore Dudley written from Richmond,
» Feb. 6, 1823, Dr. R. B. Carraichael MSS.
• York Bldgs., Dec. 27, 1814, Letters to a Y. R., 170.
» Garland, v. 2, 109.
404 John Randolph of Roanoke
in which his admiration for fine women ranged over the
whole Atlantic Coast from Richmond to Boston :
"There are two not 'unknown,' but unmentioned, ladies who
have spoken of you to me in very flattering terms; the fashion-
able Miss M. and the elegant Mrs. W. . The latter
expressed her regret at being from home when you called.
Mrs. Bell often inquires after you. She is my chief resource of
female society and reminds me of Mrs. G! The dignity
and elegance of her pursuits, compared with the frivolous
occupations or inane indolence of our ladies in general, give a
new charm to the beauty of her person and the polish of her
manners."'
So, it is evident, after all, that it is not a Maryland or
a Virginia, but a New England, woman — ^the marvelous
Mrs. G , who was in his eyes of "her gentle sex the
paragon." (a)
Scattered through Randolph's journals, too, are the
names of many Southside Virginia ladies whom he met
from time to time in his social circuits in that region, or
received at Roanoke; such as Mrs. Tabb, Mrs. Banister,
Mrs. Deane, Madame Carrington, and the Ladies Bruce.
"Ladies," is a word which frequently recurs in these
intimate records of his private life. Once, in amusing
juxtaposition to one of the meteorological jottings in which
they abound, he makes this confusing entry, which is
certainly suggestive of glowing charms: "Ladies 76°.**^
The pleasure that Randolph derived from the society
of women is enough in itself to negative the idea that he
was a mere gloomy misanthrope. This idea was enter-
tained by even such a writer as Baldwin. "He was the
most unsocial of men, "he says in one place ^; and in another
he terms him an * * aristocratic anchorite. * * ^ This erroneous
conception of Randolph's life and character is doubtless
* Richm., Mar. 20, 18 14, Letter f to a F. /?., 156. * Va, Hist. Soc.
* Party Leaders, 228. ^ /J. , 2 1 4.
Randolph as a Man 405
attributable to the fact that Baldwin wrote his essay at a
time and under circumstances that made him dependent
mainly upon Garland's Life of Randolph for his knowledge
of Randolph's social traits. Unfortunately, the social side
of that biography is principally made up of the unreserved
letters in which Randolph laid bare the most secret
recesses of his soul to Dr. Brockenbrough after his body
and mind had become deeply cankered by disease. He
was not '*the most tmsocial of men, " nor was he an aris-
tocratic or any other sort of anchorite. It is true that
with advancing years and growing infirmities he some-
times became peevish when some rustic neighbor taxed
his time and strength unduly with his tmcongenial com-
panionship, or he was called upon to receive "tmmeaning
visits** from some one whose call was inspired by mere
ctuiosity or conventionality. But his letters, when read
as a whole, and, above all, his Diary and other jotunals
demonstrate beyond the possibility of reasonable contro-
versy that, except when tortured by physical anguish, or
transformed by mental distraction, he was an intensely
social being. And, indeed, no matter how miserable he
was, his yearning for the society of those, who were truly
dear to him, underwent but little change. All agree that
in his happier hours he was a charming conversationalist
and a delightful companion. Testifying in the Randolph
will litigation. Dr. Thomas Robinson deposed that he had
had many years of close intimacy with Randolph before
he removed from Prince Edward County to take up his
residence in Petersburg, and that, during the interval
between 1800 and 1805, Randolph was "remarkably gay
in his temper and warm in his affections" ; and that, even
after he had become more serious and reserved and was
more sleepless than any person whom the witness had ever
known, in consequence of his love affair, and would fre-
quently, in the course of the night, exclaim, "Macbeth
hath murdered sleep," he recovered in a degree, and re-
4o6 John Randolph of Roanoke
sumed in a measure, his gaiety and cheerfulness. " ' This,
the reader should bear in mind, is the testimony of a man
who was not friendly to Randolph during the later years
of his life, and fixes the real beginning of Randolph's
mental disturbances at quite an early period. "His con-
versation," we are told by Sawyer, who knew him well,
"was as agreeable and instructive as his manners were
polished, gentlemanly and polite. "' In another place in
his biography. Sawyer pays a still more emphatic tribute
to Randolph's social gifts:
'*He was fond of a social circle around his parlor fire of an
evening," he says. **He was the soul of conversation, every
person preferring to hear him than to hear themselves talk.
He was as brilliant and original on these occasions as he was on
the floor of Congress, and would sit up till midnight if he found
a few friends willing to remain as long to listen to his
discourses."^
To Sawyer we owe two stories about Randolph which,
though destitute of any great degree of point, show how
facetious and light-hearted he could be in 1807 at Wash-
ington with the members of his mess. On one occasion,
when Randolph was complaining of a hard bargain to
which he had been held by Melvil, his tailor, a member of
the mess interrupted him and said that Randolph was not
acquainted with the mode of shopping prevalent in Wash-
ington ; that the Washington merchants had two prices —
an asking price and a taking price, and that it had been
his own habit to send his wife around to make all the pur-
chases for the family, by which he had effected a saving of
15 to 20%. To this interruption Randolph merely re-
plied: "I had rather my wife should make a living any
other way but one than that. " a reply which Sawyer says
* Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., Clk's OflSce, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
■P. 118. 3/J., p. 45.
Randolph as a Man 407
his character as an old bachelor made even more comical
than it would otherwise have been. A few evenings after-
wards, Randolph took his turn at interruption. James M.
Gamett, who had recently been shooting canvas-back
ducks, was telling a story about another sportsman whom
he had met on his little excursion.
**The man,** he said, **had followed a large flock till it
entered a cove, and secreted himself behind a log, to await an
opportunity to get a number in a range. After waiting in the
cold for sometime, and finding a fair chance to place his gun
over the log to take rest, and just as he had taken sight, and
was ready to pull trigger, what should he see but another long
gun directly opposite, aiming at the same object. He had
hardly time to drop down behind the log before away blazed
the other sportsman, the whole load coming into the log
behind which he was **
"Lying,** broke in Randolph hilariously, to the great
diversion of the company.'
This, of course, was when Randolph wore the rose of
youth upon him, so far as the premature decline of his
health ever permitted him to wear a fresh one at all. But,
even 14 or 15 years later, the social vivacity which these
stories manifest had not died out, because it is of this
period in Randolph*s life that Thomas H. Benton is speak-
ing when he bears instructive testimony to Randolph*s
social accomplishments. *'His temper was naturally gay
and social, and so indulged, when suffering of mind and
body permitted. He was the charm of the dinner table,
where his cheerful and sparkling wit delighted every ear,
lit up every countenance, and detained every guest. ** '
The intimacy between Randolph and Dr. Brocken-
brough was such that Randolph spent weeks at a time in
the house of the latter at Richmond, which afterwards,
when it was the official home of Jefferson Davis, became
» Sawyer, 30. *30 Years* View, 474.
4o8 John Randolph of Roanoke
known as * * the White House of the Confederacy' ' ; ' and Dr.
Brockenbrough is credited with the statement that Ran-
dolph was the *'most agreeable and interesting inmate
imaginable. " ' * * In conversational powers, ' ' the Reminis-
cences of Jacob Harvey declare, *'he was surpassed by
none, and rarely equalled by any, of his distinguished
contemporaries."^ Harvey further. says that he could
not imagine a greater delight than it would be to him to
repeat the voyage on which Randolph was his fellow-
passenger in 1822.* John Lambert, an English traveller,
after expressing an unfavorable opinion of Randolph's
physical appearance, adds:
*'His voice is somewhat feminine; but that is little noticed
the moment he has entered fully upon his subject, whether it
be at the convivial table or in the House of Representatives.
The defects of his person are then forgotten in one continued
blaze of shrewd, sensible and eloquent remarks."*
In his notes, Nathan Loughborough expresses regret
that there had been no Boswell to preserve Randolph's
* * brilliant colloquial displays. " ^
All this praise is so absolute that we feel as if we were
treading upon somewhat safer ground when we find the
same laudation, dashed with a little acerbity, in the letters
of Elijah H. Mills, a Senator from Massachusetts. In a
letter written in 18 16, Mills thus describes Randolph:
**He is really a most singular and interesting man; regard-
less entirely of form and ceremony in some things, and punctil-
ious to an extreme in others. He yesterday dined with us.
He was dressed in a rough, coarse short hunting-coat, with
small clothes and boots, and over his boots a pair of coarse
« Va. Homes fire, by Lancaster, 130. • Id,, 133.
1 Tlie New Mirror, v. 2. 120. < Id.
i Travels Through Canada and The C/. 5., v. 2, 417.
* Nathan Loughborough MSS.
Randolph as a Man 409
cotton leggings tied with strings round his legs. He engrossed
almost the whole conversation, and was exceedingly amusing
as well as eloquent and instructive."'
In another letter written in 1822, Mills said:
"Our Massachusetts people, and I among the number, have
grown great favorites with Mr. Randolph. He has invited
me to dine with him twice and he has dined with us as often.
He is now what he used to be in his best days; in good spirits,
with fine manners and the most fascinating conversation. . . .
For the last two years, he has been in a state of great pertur-
bation, and has indulged himself in the ebullitions of littleness
and acerbity, in which he exceeds almost any man living. He
is now in better htunor, and is capable of making himself
exceedingly interesting and agreeable. How long this state of
things may continue may depend upon accident or caprice.
He is therefore not a desirable inmate or a safe friend, but,
under proper restrictions, a most entertaining and instructive
companion.***
A view that Mills gives us of Randolph in. 1826, four
years later, was, doubtless, tinged by impressions left upon
him by the imsettled condition of Randolph*s mind in that
year. Mills was then sick, and Randolph was calling on
him oftener than usual tor that reason.
** He now lives within a few doors of me, and has called almost
every evening and morning to see me. This has been very
kind of him, but is no earnest of continued friendship. In
his likings and dislikings, as in everything else, he is the most
eccentric being upon the face of the earth, and is as likely to
abuse friend as foe; hence, among all those with whom he has
been associated during the last 30 years, there is scarcely an
individual whom he can call his friend. At times, he is the
most entertaining and amusing man alive, with manners the
most pleasant and agreeable; (a) and, at other times, he is
» Jan. 19, 1816, Proceedings Mass. Hist. Soc. (1881-2), v. 19, 19.
•Jan. 15, 1822, Proceedings Mctss. Hist. Soc. (1881-2), v. 19, 32.
410 John Randolph of Roanoke
sour, morose, crabbed, ill-natured and sarcastic, rude in
manners and repulsive to everybody. Indeed, I think he is
partially deranged and seldom in the full possession of his
reason."*
What Randolph thought of Mills we have little means
of knowing, beyond an exclamation in one of his letters :
"Poor little Mills!''* But this abrupt way of disposing
of a man is entirely too much in the manner of Thomas
Carlyle to be at all final. One thing is certain : If Mills
had not been a very sensible, worthy man, Randolph
would never have sought his society as he did.
One of the impressions left upon the mind of Randolph's
time by his conversation was that of a memory almost
pretematurally retentive. In his Figures of the Past,
Josiah Quincy tells us that, in the course of a conversation,
which he had with Randolph at Washington in 1826,
Randolph, when asked by him just where he would find a
paragraph in the works of Edmund Burke, which the for-
mer had quoted during the conversation, referred him to
a copy of Burke in the Congressional Library, and speci-
fied unerringly from memory the very shelf and the very
place on it where the volumes stood and the number and
page of the particular volume in which the paragraph
would be found. ^
In his Recollections of John Randolph , we are informed
by the Rev. Wm. S. Lacy that, on one occasion, when a
quotation from SaUust, used by Wm. B. Giles in a political
essay, which Randolph was reading aloud to a group of
his friends under the ancient elms, that shaded the court
house yard at Prince Edward Court House, was pro-
nounced very apt by some of Randolph's auditors, Ran-
dolph remarked : **It is good Latin, but it is not Sallust's
Latin " ; and, taking out his pencil, wrote on the margin of
' Mar. 10, 1826, Id., 49. " Garland, v. 2, 272.
s Figures of the Past, 214.
Randolph as a Man 41 1
the newspaper from which he had been reading what he
remembered as the true version and said : ' * Here, gentle-
men, is the language that Sallust uses in usum Delphini,
and I'll bet my Betsy Robertson [his riding mare] against
the sorriest gelding on the ground I am right and Mr.
Giles is wrong*'; and so it proved when a copy of Sallust
was shortly afterwards produced and examined. ^
The testimony of Jacob Harvey on the same subject is
equally amazing; indeed so much so that we cannot but
again suspect that Harvey's genius was just a little too
lively for the responsibilities of sober narration. Accord-
ing to his account, which is extraordinary enough, even
when the bright froth on its surface has been blown
away, Randolph had a knowledge of the geography and
topography of Great Britain which Pennant might have
envied. He even exhibited the most intimate familiarity
with the most important light-houses and the principal
headlands on the British coast ; indeed with the latitude
and longitude of different points on it. In bet after
bet between Randolph and the Captain of the Amity,
the Captain, Harvey tells us, was floored by Randolph's
superior knowledge in these respects. Later, the Captain,
after looking at the compass at Randolph's request, told
him how the ship was heading; whereupon Randolph
offered to bet him a pipe of wine or of Schuydam gin that,
if the Amity continued exactly on her present course, she
would strike Sligo Head. The Captain, not unmindful of
his previous disappointments, refused to bet, but said that
he thought that they would hit the **Mull of Cantiro."
Upon reference to the chart, however, it was ascertained
that Randolph was right. ^ Nor was this all. Harvey
found that Randolph was intimately acquainted with
every part of England, Scotland, and Ireland, not merely
with their cities, towns, and villages, including the streets,
* Union Seminary Mag. (1893-94), v. 5, i-io.
» The New Mirror, v. i, 313, 389.
412 John Randolph of Roanoke
lanes, and alleys of London, but also with their country
seats ; and that he could repeat the pedigree of every noted
race horse then alive, describe every celebrated horse-race
which had occurred within the last fifty years, and even
remembered the names of the riders who took part in
them.' (a)
The root of this minute knowledge of Great Britain and
British conditions was, of coiu-se, Randolph's deep-seated
partiality for England. Harvey says that, when the
Amity was running along the coast of Ireland, Randolph
stated facts about its physical features which might have
fallen from the lips of an Irish cotmtry gentleman rather
than from those of a Virginia planter who had never been
across the Atlantic before; and that, when Randolph
obtained his first view of England, he shed tears of delight,
exclaiming : ' * Thank God that I have lived to behold the
land of Shakespeare, of Milton, of my forefathers! May
her greatness increase through all times!***
But love England as he did, he never lost sight of her
duty to Ireland. **An Irish Tory, Sir, I never could
abide, ** he said on one occasion to Harvey.^
Even at Roanoke, alien to England as were its two
crude dwellings, its slave cabins, its black bondsmen, its
unsubdued woods, and its only partially subdued fields,
an English coach, English harness and saddlery, English
plate, English clothes and boots, English books, and an
English newspaper, side by side with the Richmond En-
quirer, ^ evidenced the fact that to Randolph at any rate
the American Revolution had not been one of those mighty
erosive agencies which leaves nothing behind it but an
tmbroken sea separating two completely divided head-
lands. The latter part of the Diary contains a mass of
« The New Mirror, v. i, 313; v. 2, 28, 30. */(i., v. i, 391.
J The New Mirror, v. 2, 6.
< Letter from J. R. to James Momoe, Feb. 28, 1894, Monroe Papers, v. 10,
1252, Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 4^3
information relating to English peers, peeresses, common-
ers, scapegraces, and wantons, which we should be glad to
have had displaced by a mass of similar information more
in keeping with the spirit of our own age and country.
He was almost as much at home in London as was
Benjamin Franklin :
"My physical comforts here," he wrote to his niece in 1830,
"are greater than I could have at home, and there you know I
am without society. I have also many other resources; a
London newspaper (how unlike our low scurrilous press!)
for my daily breakfast; the National Gallery of Pictures by
great masters not 150 yards off. The grand menagerie of wild
beasts where I can see God in his creatures is close at hand.
I have not been to any theatre or public place except to be
presented to the King, and very few of my old acquaintances
know of my being in London. My chiefest pleasure and
delight, walking through the streets and observing upon the
inexhaustible wonders of London, is cut off, and with it many
a lucky purchase of books which I used to rummage out of the
holes and comers of this miraculous city."^
So wedded was Randolph to England that, after his
return from England, even his devoted friend, Wm. Leigh,
thought that it would be better for him to live in England
than at Roanoke. He could not go through a stormy
session of Congress; neither could he live in solitude at
home, Judge Leigh believed. *
One of the most interesting forms that the tenacious
memory of Randolph assiuned was that of frequent and
apt quotations from the ancient and English classics.
Calhoun thought that he quoted too much. A third per-
son might well think that Calhoun himself quoted too
little. We can only say that no public speaker ever
quoted prose or poetry more appositely, or was less sub-
' London, Dec. 21, 1830, Bryan MSS.
• Letter to Clay, Halifax, Mar. 10, 1833, Clay Papers, Libr. Cong.
414 John Randolph of Roanoke
ject to the reproach, just or unjust, which caused Disraeli
on a memorable occasion to advise Sir Robert Peel to stick
to quotation because he never quoted anything that had
not already received the meed of parliamentary appro-
bation. To realize how infinitely superior in point of real
culture Randolph was to most of his parliamentary con-
temporaries in Congress, we have but to compare his
quotations with theirs, and, even if he did use a trite Latin
phrase, or quote one or more commonplace lines of poetry,
the tame words, transmuted by their highly original con-
text, seemed to undergo a change like that which is
wrought when a common twig or blade of grass becomes
incrusted with bright frost crystals in the night. His
memory bore his stores of knowledge so lightly that an
implement received by him from the hand of another
seemed to fit his as readily as one of his own. What he
knew he did not acquire by a process of veneering, but
by a process of absorption and saturation.
In addition to his lively temperament, his social sym-
pathies, and his intellectual endowments, Randolph pos-
sessed most of the tastes which help to promote the
happiness of human society in its narrower sense. He
was not only fond of singing, but he had a good voice
himself.
** I once staid all night with Mr. Randolph," says James W.
Bouldin in his Recollections ^ **and for some reason, which I do
not remember, I slept in the same room with him. Having
gone to bed, Mr. Randolph at a late hour of the night, roused
me by setting his books to rights and singing:
"'Fresh and strong the breeze is blowing.
As your bark at anchor rides.'
I thought his singing as far surpassed other men's singing as his
speaking surpassed other men's speaking."*
> Bouldin, II.
Randolph as a Man 415
He was a good whist and chess player. ' He was not
indifferent to good fare when his health was such as to
make food something more than a mere staff of life to him ;
smoked cigars occasionally, at any rate, and wished for a
companion with whom to share a pipe and bottle, (a)
How addicted he was to racing, an eminently social pas-
time, and to shooting, a social pastime with all but the
grossly selfish, we shall presently see. If Baldwin could
have read the Diary and briefer journals of Randolph,
before expressing the opinion that the latter lacked a
social spirit, he would have recanted his incorrect con-
ception of Randolph's character. Of course, when Ran-
dolph resided at Bizarre or Roanoke he was not in the
midst of such a stream of people as when he was at Wash-
ington or Richmond, Both Bizarre and Roanoke were in
sequestered and sparsely settled regions, and no little
space had to be traversed by the individuals who made up
the social life of those places to render them real social
centres; but, scattered ever3rwhere throughout the terri-
tory in Virginia south of the James and north of the Roa-
noke, which stretched from the foothills of the Blue Ridge
to Petersburg, were plantation homes which created a true
social life that, natural and simple as it was, and powerless
to vie with the ostentatious luxury and display of other
commimities of the United States at the present time as
it would be, was distinguished by no common degree of
dignity and refinement. In most of these homes, Ran-
dolph was throughout his life a frequent and a welcome
guest, and not a few of them were those of beloved rela-
tions and friends. No detailed description of the Bizarre
mansion house, which was sustained by a plantation of
some 1,800 or 1,900 acres, lying on both sides of the
Appomattox, is known to us. We only know that it was
the second house that had stood upon the same site, and
Latrobe simply says of it that there was nothing about its
' The New Mirror, v. i, 331.
4i6 John Randolph of Roanoke
appearance to suggest oddity.' In a letter written by
Randolph in the latter part of his life, however, we do get
an interesting glimpse of its domestic economy and of its
efl&cient and proud-spirited mistress — ^Judith Randolph.
Indeed, the whole letter, with the exception of its con-
cluding paragraph, is a vignette which might well have
been added to our description in the preceding pages of
this book of Southside Virginia. It was written after
Randolph had returned from his asyliun in the home of his
friend John Marshall, to his own home at Roanoke, and
had again reached mentally something like a state of
stable equilibriiun :
* * Dear Marshall : On taking out my chariot this morning,
for the first time, since I got from your house, to dean it and
the harness (for the dreadful weather has frozen us all up until
today), the knife was found in the bottom of the carriage,
where it must have been dropped from a shallow waist-coat
pocket, as I got in at your door, for I missed the knife soon
afterwards. When I got home, I had the pockets of the
chariot searched, and everything there taken out, and it was
not imtil John had searched strictly into my portmanteau and
bag, taking out everything therein, that I became perfectly
convinced of what I was before persuaded, that I had left the
knife in my chamber in your house on Tuesday the 6th, and,
when I heard it had not been seen, I took it for granted that
your little yellow boy, having *found it,* had, according to the
negro code of morality, appropriated it to himself. In this, it
seems I was mistaken, and I ask his pardon as the best amends
I can make to him; and, at the same time to relieve you and
Mrs. M. from the unpleasant feeling that such a suspicion would
occasion, I dispatch this note by a special messanger, although
I have a certain conveyance tomorrow. I make no apology to
yourself or to Mrs. M. for the frank expression of my suspicion,
because truth is the Goddess at whose shrine I worship, and no
Huguenot in France, or Morisco in Spain, or Judaizing Christ-
ian in Portugal ever paid more severely for his heretical schism
'June 12, 1796, The Journal ofLatrobe, 11.
Randolph as a Man 417
than I have done in leaving the established church of falsehood
and grimace. I am well aware that ladies are as delicate as
they are charming creatures, and that, in our intercourse with
them, we must strain the truth as far as possible. Brought up
from their earliest infancy to disguise their real sentiments
(for a woman would be a monster who did not practice this
disguise) it is their privilege to be insincere, and we should
despise [them] and justly too, if they had that manly frankness
and reserve, which constitutes the ornament of our character,
as the very reverse does of theirs. We must, therefore, keep
this in view in all of our intercourse with them, and recollect
that, as our point of honour is courage and frankness, theirs
is chastity and dissimulation, for, as I said before, a woman
who does not dissemble her real feelings is a monster of
impudence. Now, therefore, it does so happen (as Mr.
Canning would say) that truth is very offensive to the ears of a
lady when to those of a gentleman (her husband for instance)
it would be not at all so. To illustrate — Mrs. Randolph of
Bizarre, my brother's widow, was beyond all comparison the
nicest and best house-wife that I ever saw. Not one drop of
water was suffered to stand upon her sideboard, except what
was in the pitcher, the house from cellar to garret, and in every
part [was] as clean as hands could make it, and everything as it
should be to suit even my fastidious taste.
**I lived there after my brother's death from 1796 to 18 10,
inclusive, and never did I see or smell anything to offend my
senses or my imagination but once. The chamber pots were as
sweet and as clean as the tea cups, being constantly washed
and sunned, and the necessary was as clean as the parlour, and,
except in autumn, I would defy you to find a leaf or a feather
in the yard. No poultry were permitted to come into it; and
we had no dirty children, white or negro, to make litter and
filth. A strong enclosure of sawn plank, eight feet high, fenced
in the kitchen, smoke-house, ice-house, pigeon house, veal-
house, and wood-house, in which the wood for the use of the
house was stacked away under lock and key. The turkey and
hen houses were in the same enclosure, which had two doors,
one next the dwelling house, for the use of the mistress and
house servants, and large enough to admit a wagon on the badi
VOL.[lI — 27
41 8 John Randolph of Roanoke
or north side; beyond which was a well built quarter, with two
brick chimneys and two rooms and four rooms without for
servants. There was also what I had forgot, a spinning and
weaving house. At night, the doors of this enclosure were
locked up, not a servant being allowed to sleep within it,
although every one of them was in soimd of the lady's bell.
On one unhappy day, in a very hot and damp spell of weather
of long continuance, a piece of cold lamb was brought to table
that was spoiled, the first and last instance in nearly fifteen
years of the slightest neglect in household economy. I ordered
the waiter to take it away; it being spoiled. Mrs. R. resented
this and flatly contradicted me, and, altho' the lamb absolutely
stunk, she ate a part of it to prove her words true; and was
affronted with me almost past forgiveness. I dare say, if I
had not noticed the lamb, she might have given a hint to the
servant to take it away, but the honest, naked truth was not to
be borne. We had no company but Dudley and her younger
son, then school boys, and an Englishman named Knowles,
who acted as overseer or steward, and dined with us until he
took to drink.
**Mrs. R. stoutly denied that the lamb couW be spoiled, be-
cause it had been boiled only the day before and had been in
the ice-house ever since. I admitted her facts but denied her
logic, which was truly a woman's, I maintained that the highest
evidence was that of the senses, that we must reason from
facts, where we could get at them, and it was only where we
could not that it was fair to argue from probabilities; that the
lamb stunk, and, therefore, was not sound. This she denied,
and, to prove her words, actually made a shift to swallow half a
mouthful, which, under other circumstances, she would not
have done for a thousand dollars. So much for the ladies,
charming creatures, the salt of the earth, whom, like Uncle
Toby and all other old bachelors, I never could thoroughly
understand for want of the key of matrimony, which alone can
unlock their secrets and make plain (as many a husband can
tell) all the apparent contradictions in their character. Yes,
so much for the fairer and better part of the creation; as from
my soul I believe them to be, but who, as the Waverly man*
says of kings, are Kittle Cattle to shoe behind, and so it ought
Randolph as a Man 4^9
to be, for it is their poor and almost only privilege to kick,
while we roam where we will, and they must sit still until they
are asked. I, therefore, am for upholding them in all their
own proper privileges, so long as they don't encroach upon
those of men. A woman who unsexes herself deserves to be
treated and will be treated as a man.'*^
The first entry in the Diary is under date of Sept. i,
1808, and the last under date of Feb. 15, 1 815. It covers
a period, therefore, of only some 6}/^ years. After its last
date, the book was used down to the date of Randolph's
death merely as a repository for memoranda of the most
miscellaneous descriptions relating to almost every con-
ceivable subject of which he desired to preserve a perma-
nent record. Even between 1796 and 18 10, Randolph
was frequently at Roanoke, where he seems to have made
adequate provision for his occasional reception though he
was not living there permanently. After 18 10, he resided
at Roanoke until his death, and, during the whole period,
covered by the Diary, his habits were very social, even
when he was not engaged in political canvassing. When
he resided at Bizarre, one day we find him at Bizarre; the
next day he is off to Charlotte Court House and Roanoke,
where he entertains his friends William Leigh and William
B. Banks; on another day, we find him at a barbecue; on
another, at a muster ; on another, at an election in Cumber-
land County, and, on still another, at a ffite at Farmville
given to him by his friends in honor of his tritunphant re-
election to Congress. Now, diarizing irregularly, de die in
diem, he notes that he slept at the Dillons' ; or that he break-
fasted with his friend Booker, or dined at George Skipwith's,
or killed 25 partridges with the aid of Blake Woodson and
Theodore Dudley. These are but typical illustrations of
his movements, when he resided at Bizarre, gathered at
» Roanoke, Saturday, Dec. 17, 1831, H past 12, Coalter's Exor. w. Ran-
dolph's Exor., Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersbuig, Va.
420 John Randolph of Roanoke
random from the first few pages of the Diary. In con-
nection with his oscillations between Washington and
Bizarre or Roanoke, the reader has already been apprized
of the manner in which the hospitable cotmtry seats be-
tween Bizarre and Washington sometimes supplied him
with a series of easy stepping-stones. How hot he kept
his thoroughbred's hoofs, when he was in transit from one
point to another, we may imagine after reading this entry
in the Diary under date of March 27, 1 809 : ' * Left Bizarre
at 54ths past 6; stopped at Cheshire's and ^a Ira i hour
and J^. Reached New Canton at ^ past 12. Brunette
not at all fatigued. Mon. 27. Rode from court in two
hours. Mare looked as full as if she had not been used;
appetite or spirits never flagged in the least ; she anxious
to come faster."
And not only does the Diary show that, when Randolph
resided at Bizarre, he was frequently visiting the houses
of his friends in the surrotmding territory, but that they
were often visiting him at Bizarre; and occasionally visi-
tors from remote points would be lodged tmder its roof.
Among the families, with whom he was most intimate,
when he lived at Bizarre, were those of his innumerable
Randolph kinsfolk south of the James and west of Peters-
burg; the Johnstons, the Bookers, the Creed Taylors, the
Cunninghams, the Dillons, the Woodsons, the Daniels,
the Skipwiths, of Hors du Monde, the Carringtons, the
Branches, the Mortons, the Robinsons, the Venables, the
Heths, the Millers, the Murrays, and the Watkinses,
whose homes, collectively speaking, stretched all the way
from the James to the Roanoke. During the i)eriod,
covered by the Diary, after Randolph left Bizarre, his
spirit at Roanoke was not less social than it had been at
Bizarre. Over and over again, while he resided at Roa-
noke, we find him sleeping, breakfasting, or dining under
the roofs of many of the leading families of Halifax,
Charlotte, Prince Edward, Cumberland, Buckingham,
Randolph as a Man 421
Amelia, Nottoway, Chesterfield, and Powhatan Counties,
in addition to all or most of those just mentioned, such as
the Coleses, the Leighs, the Clarks, the Colemans, the
Bruces, the Skipwiths, of Prestwould, the Bouldins,
the Reads, the Legrands, the Hubbards, the Wilsons,
the Nelsons, the Deanes, the Pembertons, the Scotts, the
Farrars, the Tabbs, the Banisters, the Bathurst Ran-
dolphs, the Womacks, the Flournoys, the Mosbys, the
Merrys, the Johnsons, the Hardaways, the Harrisons,
the Cabells, the Spencers, the Barksdales, the Redfords,
the Berkeley s, and the Irbys. The Diary shows also that,
during the same period, Randolph so frequently extended
the hospitality of his home to his friends and acquaint-
ances, some from communities as remote as North
Carolina , that it would be simply an imposition upon the
reader to name them, or to say how frequently they
crossed his threshold. His 1817, 181 8, 181 9, and 1824
journals tell the same story of social activity, and so does
his 1830 journal, so far as it was kept before he sailed for
Russia.
In the course of little more than a week, in October,
1810, he dined with his friends the Deanes on Friday;
dined at Captain Pemberton's on Saturday; spent a quiet
day at Thomas Miller's on Sunday, and on Monday
pushed on to Wm. Scott's, where his friend Major Wm.
Scott was very low ; and thence, on Tuesday, proceeded to
Richmond by the Manakin Town Ferny ; and thence, four
days later, reversing his course to the Ferry, returned to
Roanoke by way of Hors du Monde and Bizarre. With
the numerous Carringtons about him, he maintained for
many years a commerce of social amenities which was
rarely interrupted, and, when in 181 3, the two Pauls, as
he called the two Paul Carringtons of his day, to signalize
their conversion from the damnable doctrine of Federalism
to the true Madisonian faith, kindly banished him for a
time from Sinope, he still kept up something like an inter-
422 John Randolph of Roanoke
change of society with some good fellows in Halifax. We
use his own words. "
In using them, Randolph expressed himself but feebly,
because his journal entries make it plain that he thought
no more of riding oflE 1 5 or 20 miles to dine and play whist
with a group of his Halifax County friends, at Wm.
Leigh's, or James Bruce's, or one of the Claries', or Coleses*,
than an inhabitant of Richmond at the present time would
of going a few miles into its suburbs in a motor car to do a
similar thing. And very joily gatherings these must have
been, if we may judge by the reluctance with which the
individuals, who constituted them, parted company with
each other. For instance, on July 9, 181 1, after spending
the preceding day with Mr. Coleman in Halifax, Ran-
dolph went on to one of the Clarks' and spent the day
there with Ragland, Isaac H. Coles, and James Bruce;
and, on the next day, accompanied by Clark, Coleman,
Ragland, Coles, and Bruce, returned to Roanoke where
they all dined together, with the addition of one of the
Watkinses and William Leigh, who had arrived there
during Randolph's absence. Two days later, Randolph
goes off with Leigh and Bruce to Bruce's, to dine with
Bruce again, and thence, in the evening, to Wm. Leigh's.
Nor did the banishment from Sinope continue very long;
for few names recur oftener in Randolph's journals than
those of the Carringtons.
This was a part of his social itinerary in August, 181 7:
On Aug. 6, he spent the night at the residence of Dr.
Bathurst Randolph, Obsto (I stop you), the very name of
which suggests the arresting hand of cordial hospitality;
the night of Aug. 7, he slept at D. Meade's; and then,
after spending Aug. 8 and 9 in Richmond, on Aug. 10 he
came back to Clay Hill, the home of Mrs. Tabb, in time for
dinner; whence, after taking dinner, he proceeded to
Obsto, where he remained some two weeks in the society
« Roanoke, July 9, 1813, J. H. Whitty MSS.
Randolph as a Man 423
of his host and his host's family and of his friends, Dr.
Banister and Mrs. Tabb, who resided in the neighborhood
and had him to dinner at their houses on different days
before he went back to Roanoke. On Sept. 3, he was
again in the same hospitable locality and again for two
weeks the recipient of the same warm-hearted attentions
at the hands of its inhabitants.
"In his house," Randolph said, in a letter to his niece after
the death of Dr. Bathurst Randolph, *'I spent many weeks
in succession every year and never felt less at home than in
my own. Indeed, the warmth and cordiality of the attentions
I received from every member of the family rendered my time
as agreeable as it could be made."*
In July, 18 10, he went all the way to Warrenton, North
Carolina, spending a night at Prestwould both going and
returning, and receiving many social attentions, while in
North Carolina ; but, being so unf orttmate on his return,
when he was almost in sight of his home, as to have his
chair shafts broken , when he was crossing the Little Roa-
noke, and to get a good ducking. In North Carolina, he
attended the wedding of his friend. Governor James
Turner, (a) and also a barbecue at Richard Bullock's.^
On another occasion in September, 181 8, when his mind
was fermenting with religious enthusiasm, he went on an
excursion as far as the home of one of the Prestons, in
Botetourt County, Va., ascending the Peaks of Otter on
his way, and writing to Dr. Brockenbrough after his
return to Roanoke : * * I was on the top of the pinnacle of
Otter this day fortnight; a little above the earth, but how
far beneath Heaven.''^ On a second visit in October,
1 81 8, to the same region, he stopped long enough at Red
Hill, the former home of Patrick Henry, to refresh his
admiration for a statesman and orator, whose wisdom and
» Roanoke, July 29, 1821, Bryan MSS. « J. R.'s Diary.
* Garland, v. 2, 103.
4^4 John Randolph of Roanoke
eloquence were ever among his favorite topics of conver-
sation. '
In the summer of 1801, Randolph visited one of the
"Springs" in the Virginia mountains with a party of
ladies.* In June, 18 13, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough
from Roanoke that, if he went to any watering place, it
would be to the Virginia Hot Springs, but this, he said, was
to be merely for the purpose of stewing the rhetmiatism
out of his carcass. ^ Other occasions, when he wandered
oflf his beaten social paths, might be mentioned; as when
he repaired several times to Nottoway County to see his
intimate friend Edmtmd Irby, or some other friend.^
Once, after remaining for some days at his favorite places
of resort, Obsto and Clay Hill, he kept on as far past
Petersburg as Claremont, the famous plantation on the
James River of Col. Wm. Allen. * (a)
To Richmond Randolph was frequently taken by the
desire for social diversion, and he had numerous friends
and acquaintances there. In 181 3, after his defeat at the
polls, he visited that place, and remained in it, under the
roof of Dr. Brockenbrough , for six months ; with the excep-
tion of the time consumed in two excursions to Ellerslie.
Of this visit, the Diary contains the following memoran-
dum:
**i8i3 to 1814, from Nov. 1813 until May 9, 1814, I re-
mained in and about Richmond with my good friends Brocken-
brough; most hospitably entertained by them and by the
inhabitants; frequently dining with the Ch. Justice, Mr.
Wickham, R. Gamble, Major Gibbon, Mr. Hancock, Mr. T.
Taylor, P. Haxall, Mr. E. Cunningham, Porter, Barksdale, I.
G. Smith, Adam Murray, and staying all night with the last
« Journal, Oct. 18, 1818, Va. Hist. Soc., & Bouldin, 173.
• J. R. to Creed Taylor, July 25, 1801, Creed Taylor Papers.
i June 2, 1813, Garland, v. 2, 14.
4 1819, Journal, May 10, Va. Hist. Soc.\ 1817, Journal, Sept. 17, Va. Hist.
Soc.
8 181 7, Journal, Sept. 22, Va. Hist. Soc.
Randolph as a Man 4^5
three; also entertained by Rutherford, John Gamble, T. Wilson,
I. Ambler, N. Nicholas, W. C. WiUiams, Pickett, Dr. McLtirg.
**I had the pleasure also, during this winter, to form an
acquaintance with Mr. and Mrs. Bell, at whose house I passed
many delightful hours. Here I became [ ] with Mr.
Devereaux, Miss Barton, Mr. and Mrs. Haxall, Mr. and Mrs.
McMurdo. At the Ch. Justice's, I was introduced to Mr.
Gaston on his return from Congress. I also saw during the
winter L. W. Tazewell, Fenton Mercer, Alfred Powell; Wm.
Meade in May."'
In April, 1830, he attended the races at Richmond, and,
on the first day of the succeeding month, he attended a
barbecue at Richmond too. ^
With the leading gentlemen of Maryland Randolph was
hardly less familiar than with those of Virginia. In 1804,
he wrote to Nicholson that he might pay him a visit at
Chesterfield, on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, not to
view his country, desirable as it was, but to see and con-
verse with those in whose society he had passed some of
the least unpleasant moments of his life. Realizing that
such qualified language would hardly satisfy the just
expectations of an Eastern Shoreman, he added: '*It is
a strange expression but I could not find one more appro-
priate. " ^ He was the guest of his friend, Charles Sterrett
Ridgely, at the latter's country seat, Oaklands, in Howard
County, Md., almost as frequently as he was the guest of
his friend, Wm. R. Johnson, at his cotmtry seat, Oakland,
near Petersburg. ^ In a letter to Nicholson, he tells him
that he has just dined with his friends, Francis Scott Key
and Stanford, of North Carolina, and Mr. and Mrs. Cal-
vert at Blenheim, the country seat in Maryland of Mr. R.
Lowndes, after having made a short excursion to see Mr.
George Calvert's famous paintings and flowers. ^ On
« J. R.'s Diary.
• 1830, Journal, April 28, 29, and May i, Va, Hist. Soc.
3 Bizarre, Aug. 27, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
< J. R.'s Diary. * Apr. 17, 1810, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
4^ John Randolph of Roanoke
another occasion, one ot his journals records the fact that
he had just dined with Mr. George Calvert himself. '
With the aid of the Diary, we can trace at least one visit
that he made to Wye, the celebrated country seat of the
Lloyds, in Talbot Cotmty, Md. In connection with this
visit, the Diary contains brief references to Lloyd Tilgh-
man, of Tilghman's Point, Robert Tilghman, of Perry
Hall, John Tilghman, of Bennett's Point, Wm. G. Tilgh-
man, Robert Goldsborough, of Miles River, and the
Haddaways. About the same time, he spent an evening
at Mrs. Lloyd's at Annapolis ; dined with Mr. Oden at the
Woodyard, and visited Philip Steuart. A Marylander,
at any rate, would be at no loss to know who these friends
and acquaintances of Randolph were. Other Marylanders,
who are brought to our attention by Randolph's journals
and letters, are: Robert Oliver, one of the wealthiest and
most conspicuous Baltimoreans of his time, over whose
fine claret Randolph smacks his lips in the Diary ; General
Winder, Dr. William Gibson, Jonathan Meredith, Robert
Gilmor, James Sterrett, and Mr. Cheston.
Randolph was also well known to the society of Phila-
delphia. When Theodore Dudley was studying medicine
in that City, he wrote to him that it would give him great
pleasure to renew his old acquaintance in Philadelphia
and to form a new one with a few of its worthy inhabi-
tants. * Indeed, in his desire to give Theodore Dudley a
liberal education in every sense of the word, he did not
spare Virginia.
"I am much obliged to you for your description of the
country around (or rather on this side of) Dowingtown," he
said in another letter to Dudley. **Such accounts of the
places, persons, etc., you may see are very acceptable because
they indicate a spirit of observation. There are many who
look and do not see, while some see without looking. Indolence
» May 2, 1824, Va, Hist. Soc.
^Roanoke, Aug. 4, 1811, Letters to a Y. R,, 96.
Randolph as a Man 4^7
and indifference, the makulie du pays (of Virginia), are more
injurious to the eye-sight than candle light and the smallest
print."'
In the same letter he also says :
** I highly approve of your pedestrian essays; but choose not
Virginians for your companions. I have no doubt that many
of the medical students of the South leave Philadelphia as
ignorant of everjrthing worthy to be known in that City as
when they entered it. This arises from a clannish spirit
which makes them associate exclusively with one another,
and foster their ridiculous prejudices against the People of the
Middle and North States, of whom in fact they know
nothing."*
He had some close friends at Philadelphia, to whom we
shall refer later ; and, when he hobbled to that City in 1814,
after leaving Morrisania, and suffering an injury to his
kneecap in the accident which befell him in New York,
he rested there for some little time, and was the recipient
of no little attention at the hands of some of its people.
North of Philadelphia, Randolph seems to have had no
friends except among such individuals as had been brought
into intercourse with him at Washington in one way or
another.
Of Yankees he spoke at times even more impatiently
than he did of Virginians in his letter to Theodore Dudley.
A memorandtmi in the Diary mentions the fact that
Captain Bridger of the Schooner Sally of Marblehead,
which was met by the Concord on its way to Cronstadt,
refused to accept anything but a little pork, whiskey, and
new potatoes for 600 or 700 poimdB of fine fish. '* Pretty
well for a Yankee," notes Randolph. On another occa-
sion, in an endorsement on a letter written to him by his
friend Mark Alexander, in 1822, he terms a certain sailing-
» Roanoke, Aug. 12, 181 1, M, 97. * Id,
428 John Randolph of Roanoke
master in the United States Navy "a dirty mean Yankee
with a Vermontese savage for his mate. " '
In describing the manner in which Randolph detected
the error in Gil^' quotation from Sallust memariter. Dr.
Lacy says that he exclaimed : ' ' Now hand me the edition
I want ; in usum Delphini mind you. I'll have nothing to
do with your Yankee contrivances with English notes.
Mr. Lacy, did you ever see a Yankee who knew anything
about the classics ? " * (a)
But these were but the shallow and unreflecting utter-
ances of an intense, outspoken nature which was as lavish
as such natures generally are in the use of the acute accent.
Before the Civil War, there were reasons enough, founded
upon diversities of interest and clashes of honest convic-
tion, why a Virginian, like Randolph, and a New Eng-
lander should have cherished tmf riendly feelings towards
each other which easily passed into gross misconception and
misrepresentation ; but there never was a time when close
contact between a Virginian and a New Englander did not
more or less dissipate the senseless prejudices and pre-
possessions which they entertained about each other
personally, and which have now so far faded out that, to
give expression to them, should be regarded as denoting
not only provincial narrowness and a lack of genuine
patriotism but very bad manners besides. The letters
of Senator Mills show how much pleasure Randolph found
in the society of New Englanders at Washington; and
nothing could evidence better than the musical lines of
Whittier on Randolph how much Randolph had in com-
mon with the culture of New England.
Not only did he pay frequent visits to his friends and
acquaintances, when he was at Roanoke or elsewhere, but,
after reading his journals, it is hard to understand how he
' March 12, 1822, Geo. P. Coleman MSB.
« Early Recollections of J, R., by Wm. S. Lacy, Union Seminary Mag.
(1893-4). V. 5, pp. i-io.
Randolph as a Man 4^9
could have deemed himself a Robinson Crusoe when at
Roanoke. In holding himself up in that character, he
was simply indulging his propensity for intensive speech
or giving tongue to the restlessness and discontent of an
uncommonly active spirit, which craved strong excite-
ments, and of a body too diseased not to yield freely at
times to peevish impulses. Roanoke was but a bachelor
home, and yet, in reading Randolph's letters and journals,
it seems to us that it was not an tmworthy exponent of
the social virtues and traditions of a Virginia home of his
time. Almost every day, when he was there, some relation
or friend of his was arriving at, or leaving it. Now it was
Randolph's nephews — ^Tudor and St. George — or Peyton
Randolph, or some other Randolph who came to shoot or
to enjoy some other form of recreation; and now it was
William Leigh on his peripatetic rotmd of the county-seats
at which he practiced law so zealously that Randolph
speaks on one occasion of his looking badly and over-
worked; and now it was William B. Banks bent on some
similar errand to Charlotte Court House or elsewhere;
and now it was James Bruce or General Edward Carring-
ton, of Berry Hill, or Col. Carrington, or Col. Clark, or
some other rapidly promoted colonel of the time, on a
purely social visit; or, perhaps it was Randolph's half-
brother, Henry St. George Tucker, or some devoted friend
of his like Dr. Brockenbrough, or Edmund Irby, or Barks-
dale; or, perhaps, it was Dr. Hoge, whose character and
eloquence he so much admired. These names give but
an inadequate idea of the number of guests who, from
time to time, dined with him, formally or otherwise, or
slept under his roof during the periods covered by his
journals. One entry in the Diary, under date of Sept. 10,
1810, is: '*Bouldin, Leigh, Banks; frolic at Roanoke."
On another occasion, some 10 guests sat down with him
to meat at his table at Roanoke. At Washington, he
enjoyed in full measure the social pleasures which a thinly
430 John Randolph of I^oanoke
peopled country like that around Roanoke could only
partially supply. With some prominent residents of the
District, such as the Keys and the Tayloes, he was on
terms of heart-felt intimacy ; and, in addition to being the
life of every Congressional mess, of which he was ever a
member, he frequently gave and received invitations to
dinner, and was not infrequently seen at private routs or
assemblies. Among the persons shown by his journals to
have dined with him, as his guests at Washington, were
Francis Scott Key, Gallatin, Calhotm, Poinsett, Van
Buren, and Chief Justice Marshall. The relations be-
tween Albert Gallatin and himself became involved for a
time in the general estrangement caused by his defection
from the Jefferson administration, but in the year 1824
the two were on friendly terms again. "Couldn't dine
with General Jackson"; "Couldn't dine with Patroon
(Van Rensaeller), " are among the entries in his journal for
March, 1824.' He must have been very fond of dinners
to have burdened his pen, when diarizing about them,
with declinations as well as acceptances.
Among his dinner hosts in 181 7 were Rufus King and
Chief Justice Marshall. Among the parties that he at-
tended in 1 81 7 were Mrs. Bagot's and De. Neuville's.* (a)
In Randolph's letters, there are some quite full refer-
ences to social events of his day at Washington. Here, for
instance, is his description of a dinner given by Wm. H.
Crawford, when Secretary of the Treasury :
" I dined yesterday with the S. of the T. and, although as far
as I was concerned, the party was a very pleasant one, I can
conceive of nothing in the general more insipid than these
ministerial dinners. You are invited at 5; the usage is to be
there 15 or 20 minutes after the time; dinner never served imtil
6; and a little after 7 coflfee closes the entertainment without
the least opportunity for conversation. Quant d tnoi, I was
placed at his S ship's left hand, and he did me the honor
» Va. Hist. Soc. • Id,
Randolph as a Man 43i
to address his conversation almost exclusively to me. Now
you know that, as 'attentions' constitute the great charm of
manners, so are they more peculiarly acceptable to them that
are least accustomed to them, such as antiquated belles, dis-
carded statesmen, and bankrupts of all sorts — ^whether in
person or in character." '
And the very next paragraph in this letter is a good
reminder of the danger of relying upon Randolph's re-
pining about his own solitariness, whether at Roanoke or
Washington: ''Nothing can be more dreary than the life
we lead here. 'Tis something like being on board ship,
but not so various. We stupidly doze over our sea-coal
fires in our respective messes, and may truly be said to
hibernate at Washington. '*^
More vapid than the ministerial dinner given by Craw-
ford was another dinner given by himself; possibly be-
cause his own expectations had been a little too roseate;
seeing that he had written two days before to Dr. Brock-
enbrough that he was to have good company at least, if
not a good dinner. When the occasion had passed, he
wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough :
"Mr. Chief Justice, Tazewell, Van Buren, Benton, Morgan
of N. Y., and George Calvert dined with me yesterday (Mr.
King was sick, of his late freak in the Senate, I shrewdly sus-
pect) ; and your *fat sail-ion party' was hardly more dull than
we were. The Chief Justice has no longer the power 'd'itre
tnf.' Tazewell took to prosing at the far end of the table to
two or three, who formed a sort of separate coterie; V. B. was
unwell, and out of spirits; and I was obliged to get nearly or
quite drunk, to keep them from yawning outright."^
Rufus King had accepted an invitation but had been
prevented by sickness from attending.
Randolph himself had to be very sick not to keep a
' To Dr. Brockenbrough, Nov. 26, 1820, Garland, v. 2, 138.
' Ibid. 3 Garland, v. 2, 213.
•
432 John Randolph of Roanoke
dinner engagement and not to be the sprightliest member
of the company. In a letter to Theodore Dudley he thus
described the equivocal drink which piqued public curios-
ity so keenly: "My drink, " he says, "is toast and water
made by boiling the latter and pouring it on highly toasted
bread, so that it acquires the color of Cognac brandy."*
And the same letter indicates that he was in the habit of
carrying a bottle of this thin potation with him to dinner
parties when his health was at a low ebb.
"Yesterday," he said, "I dined out with the Speaker. I
would not have gone for any other 'dignitary' here. I made
Johnny carry my cloth shoes, and a bottle of toast and water.
The color deceived the company, except one or two near me,
whom I was obliged to let into the secret, to preserve my
monopoly. Notwithstanding all this, I am persuaded that I
was the liveliest man in the whole company; and, like Palstaff,
was not only merry myself, but the cause of mirth in others.
Mr. Secretary C, I think, will remember, for sometime, some of
my rejoinders to him, half joke, and three parts earnest, (as
Paddy says) on the subject of the constitutional powers of
Congress, and some other matters of minor note — ^although he
tried to turn them off with great good humor. To say the
truth, I have a sneaking liking for C for *by-gone's' sake; and,
if he had let alone being a great man, should have 'liked him
hugely,' as Squire Western hath it."*
How little Randolph allowed his desire for social
amusement to be influenced by his ill-health is also infer-
able from other facts stated in this letter. Mentioning a
pleasant dinner at Georgetown, he said :
"You may remember how bitter cold it was on Thursday.
The change took place about midnight of Tuesday. I slept
the forepart of it with my window hoisted, and rose about
two o'clock on Wednesday morning and shut it down. Well!
> Washington, Jan. 27, 1822, Letters toa Y, R.^ 240. * Id., 241.
Randolph as a Man 433
I rode from Georgetown home, after ten o'clock, without
suffering, in the least, from the cold except a little in the
fingers. This was neither owing to the warmth infused by
Mr. O.'s very fine old Madeira, nor by his daughter's beauty
and accomplishments; although either, I believe, would have
kept up the excitement for a longer time than it took Wildfire
*to glance' along 'the Avenue.' But, superadded to the in-
fluence of wine, and beauty, and music, and good company, I
had a leathern 'justicore' as old Edie would call it, (Juste-^u-
corps), under my waistcoat — which I recommend to all who
desire to guard against our piercing winds — and cloth shoes
over my boots. My horsemanship was, indeed, put into
requisition, on meeting a rattling hackney coach, with lights,
driving at a furious rate It was where 'the Avenue' is crossed
by a gutter and impeded by ice. Nevertheless, I did what
Ctmibey could not do with his wretched curb-bridle — ^and, as
Simon [his groom] says, *I consequenced her with a snapper.*
My disease which had been very troublesome for some days,
and particularly that morning, and which I had checked 'for
the nonce' with absorbents, recurred with ten-fold violence
in the night."'
One of the winning features of Randolph's character
was his grateful sensibility to kindness or friendly sym-
pathy in every form. Writing to Theodore Dudley during
his desperate illness in 1 817, he said:
"Mrs. John M., Mrs. B., and Mrs, F. K., have been very
kind in sending me jellies, lemons, &c. &c. Thomas M. N.
has been extremely attentive and obliging. Mr. K., of New
York, Mr. Chief Justice, Mr. H., of Maryland, Mr. M., of
South Carolina, Mr. B., of Georgetown, (I need not name P. K.
M. (no longer Abb^) C. de S., and D) have been very kind in
their attentions. Mr. M. sent me some old, choice Madeira,
and his man-cook to dress my rice; (a mystery not understood
any where on this side of Cape Fear river) ; sending, also, the
rice, to be dressed; and Mr. Chief Justice came to assist me
in drawing up my will, which I had strangely and criminally
VOL. 11—28
434 John Randolph of Roanoke
neglected for sometime past, and of which neglect I was more
strangely admonished in a dream.**"
Randolph's eager zest for human society also assumed
the form of niunerous letters to his friends and acquaint-
ances. ''Recollect, my son," he wrote to Theodore
Dudley in 1812, "that I have some 20 or 30 correspond-
ents ; you perhaps not more than 3 or 4. " * Some of these
correspondents, however, were business correspondents.
"I have about 30 letters to answer besides the daily
addition to my epistolary debt,** he wrote to Joseph
Nicholson in the preceding year. "Three of them are
from Harry Tucker. " ^ At a later period of his life, when
his strength was fast failing him, he speaks of having a
hundred unanswered letters on his hands. ^ Except when
a helpless invalid, he wrote letters with the ready facility
of a quick-witted and sympathetic woman who writes
without regard to anything but the sheer desire to open
up her heart or sotd to a child or friend. It is to be re-
gretted that he never kept any copies of his charming
letters ; a strong indication of their unstudied nature, and
it is still more to be regretted that so many of them should
have been deliberately destroyed from considerations of
delicacy or good feeling, which, however admirable, when
well judged, amounted in the old Virginia life to little less
than a destructive superstition, (a)
By Philip A. Bruce in his brief but very suggestive little
essay on Randolph the latter is pronoimced the most
brilliant man ever produced by Virginia, and, perhaps, the
most brilliant letter-writer of whom the Old South can
boast. 5 We shall not stop to express an opinion upon the
first of these two judgments, but the second we should
modify by making it broad enough to cover the whole
» Feb. 23, Letters toa Y. /?., 195. « Jan. 5, 1812, Id., 115.
» Geoiigetown, Jan. 28, 181 1, Bryan MSS.
< Letter to Nathan Loughborough, Jan. 23, 1832, Loughborough MSS.
s Libr, of Southern Lit., v. 10, 4334.
Randolph as a Man 435
United States; certainly so far as American public men
are concerned. In our opinion, the only distinguished
men in the political history of the United States who can
be placed in the same class with Randolph as a brilliant
letter- writer are Benjamin Franklin and William Wirt;
two men who differed from each other toto ccelo, except
that both had lovable natures and wrote sparkling letters.
Indeed, we do not hesitate to say that Randolph in his
own way is entitled to be included in the same category
with Gray, Horace Walpole, Gibbon, Cowper, Byron, and
Fitzgerald as one of the real masters of epistolary compo-
sition. Most of the thousands of letters which he wrote
have been destroyed or lost ; but enough remain to make
us ask sometimes why it was that he never tried his hand
at some purely literary task. We have his own word for
it that he never "made a verse in his life, "' and we are
also informed by him that all of his early literary efforts
of every sort, whatever they were, went up in flame and
smoke when Bizarre was constuned by fire.* The only
evidence that we have that he ever thought of engaging
seriously in literary work is fotmd in a letter from him to
Francis Scott Key, written before his return to Congress
in 1 8 1 5, in which he said : * * I do think a review on the plan
you mention would be highly beneficial, and, if I was fit
for anything, I should like to engage in a work of the sort ;
but 14 years of Congressional life have rendered me good
for nothing."^ The same thought is presented more
positively in a subsequent letter to Key in which he
said:
"As to the review, I am out of the question on that and
every other subject requiring any species of exertion. I said
truly when I told you that Congressional life had destroyed me.
Fruges consumer e; this is all that I am fit for; and such is my
infirmity of body that I make a very poor hand even at that,
« Letter to F. W. Gilmer, Century Mag,, 1895-6, v. 29, 714.
« Garl., V. I, II. * Garland, v. 2, 34.
436 John Randolph of Roanoke
notwithstanding I am one of those who (as the French say)
Sani nSs pour la digestion.'*^
Unfortunately, the reason that Randolph gave for his
lethargy as a potential man of letters is applicable, with
or without modification, to almost every Southern man
of his time who might have achieved literary distinction
but for the abnormal importance that the peculiar struc-
ture of Southern society gave to public eloquence. So
fraught with vital issues to the South was the long sec-
tional controversy that a Southerner of commanding tal-
ents had little choice, while it lasted, but to say with
Randolph: "As Calanthe died dancing, so must I die
speaking. "
Randolph was fond of travel and quick to avail himself
of all the amusement and social enjoyments that it affords.
Nor can there be any doubt that, whenever he was abroad,
his conversational talents and distinguished presence won
a most cordial reception for him. He visited Europe in
1822, 1824, 1826, and 1830, and we cannot but regret that
the only Journals that he ever kept while he was abroad —
those of 1 824 and 1 830 — are too fragmentary and meagre
to be of any real value.
Of his intercourse with conspicuous individuals in Great
Britain, we have some details, in addition to what we
have already laid before the reader. One of the things, by
which he was most impressed, when he was in England in
1822, was the great influence exerted by the eloquence of
Elizabeth Fry over fallen women.
" I have seen them weep repentant tears while she addressed
them/' he once said to the father of Jacob Harvey. ** I have
heard their groans of despair, Sir. Nothing but religion can
effect this fniracle. Sir, for what can be a greater miracle than
the conversion of a degraded, sinful woman taken from the
very dregs of society!'**
« Richm., May 7, 1814, Garland, v. 2, 35. « The New Mi^rar, v. i, 402.
Randolph as a Man 437
Nor without interest is the account given by the daugh-
ter of Elizabeth Fry to Harvey of the manner in which her
mother first became acquainted with Randolph.
"One day," she said, "my mother was in town getting ready
to go to Newgate when a stranger was announced. A tall,
thin gentleman, with long hair, and very strangely dressed,
entered the parlor, walked deliberately up to my mother, who
rose to receive him, and held out his hand, saying in the sweet
tone of a lady's voice: *I feel that I have some right to intro-
duce myself to Elizabeth Fry, as I am the friend of her friend,
Jessy Kersey, of Philadelphia, (a celebrated preacher in the
Society of Friends). I am John Randolph of Roanoke, State
of Virginia; the fellow-countryman of Washington.' My
mother, who had heard a great deal of him from different
persons, gave him a cordial reception, and was so extremely
pleased with his most original conversation [that] she not only
took him with her to Newgate, but invited him to come and
see us. We have since seen him several times and have been
highly delighted with him. Last week, some strangers were
to dine with us and my mother invited him to be of the ntun-
ber. In writing the note of invitation, I apologized to him for
naming so unfashionably early an hour as four o'clock, knowing
that at the West End he never dined before 8. His reply was
very characteristic and made us laugh heartily. Here it is:
*Mr. Randolph regrets that a prior engagement will deprive
him of the pleasure of dining with Mrs. Fry on Thtu^day night.
No apology, however, was necessary for the early hour named
in her note as it is two hours later than Mr. R. is accustomed
to dine in Virginia; and he has not yet been long enough in
London to learn how to turn day into night and vice versa,'' ^
We are also told by Harvey that the impression made
by Randolph upon Lord L. (Limerick?) was equally agree-
able, and that, after meeting Randolph for the first time
one night under the gallery of the House of Commons, his
Lordship, in conversation with Harvey, gave expression
to his feelings in these glowing terms :
« The New Mirror , v. i, 402.
438 John Randolph of Roanoke
**I have never met with a so thoroughly well informed
gentleman as yotir friend Randolph; no matter what the
subject — history, belles-leUres, biography; but, Sir, the most
astonishing part of all is that he possesses a minute local knowl-
edge of England and Ireland. I thought that / knew them
well, but I assure you I was obliged to yield the palm to him.
I have purposely tried to puzzle or confuse him but all in vain.
His conversational powers are most dazzling even in London,
Sir, where we pride ourselves on good talkers."*
Indeed, his Lordship was so much pleased with Ran-
dolph that he solicited the permission of the Lord Chan-
cellor to introduce him as a distinguished American into
the House of Lords by the private entrance near the
throne instead of leaving him to force his way with the
crowd through the conmion entrance. The permission
was given, and Lord L. introduced Randolph to the door-
keeper of the House of Lords, and asked him to admit him
whenever he presented himself, without requiring him to
exhibit any special order. In doing so, he remarked that
Randolph's figure and whole appearance were so singular
that the door-keeper would run no risk of having any
cotmterfeit Randolphs imposed upon him. The license,
sweeping as it was, stood successfully the test even of a
great debate on the Roman Catholic Peers Bill. Harvey
endeavored to persuade Randolph that it would not avail
on such an extraordinary occasion as that, and begged
him to make use of a special order of admission which
he had obtained from the Marquis of L. ; but Randolph
replied :
**What, Sir! do you suppose / would consent to struggle
with, and push through, the crowd of persons who for two
long hours must fight their way in at the lower door. Oh, no.
Sir! I shall do no such a thing, and, if I cannot enter as a
gentleman commoner y I go not at all!"
* The New Mirror, v. i, 403.
Randolph as a Man 439
Afterwards, when Harvey had finally squeezed himself
into the chamber by the lower door, half suffocated, and
had been fortunate enough to secure standing room at the
bar, whom should he see but Randolph walking in through
the private entrance to the chamber, in company with
Canning, Lord Castlereagh, Sir Robert Peel, and many
other celebrated members of the House of Commons ; and
he observed that some of Randolph's companions even
selected for him a prominent position where he could see
and hear perfectly, and made him the object of many
courtesies during the course of the night. '
Harvey has also reported for us some amusing observa-
tions made by Randolph upon a splendid ball which he
attended in London, and which was given under the im-
mediate patronage ot George IV — once termed by Ran-
dolph * * The English Vitellius — ' ' and the principal nobility
of his kingdom for the benefit of the poor Irish peasantry
of Munster and Connaught, who were suffering at the
time from famine and disease :
It was cheap, Sir, very cheap!'* Randolph said to Harvey.
Actors and actresses innumerable, and all dressed out most
gorgeously. There were jewels enough. Sir, there to make
new crowns for all the monarchs of Europe! and I, too, Re-
publican though I am, must needs go in a court dress! Well
Sir, don't imagine that I was so foolish as to purchase a new
suit at a cost of 25 or 30 guineas. Oh, no. I have not studied
London life for nothing ! I had been told, Sir, that many a
noble lady would appear at the ball that night with jewels
hired for the occasion, and I took the hint. Sir, and hired a full
court dress for 5 guineas. When I beheld myself in the glass,
I laughed at the oddity of my appearance, and congratulated
myself that I was 3,000 miles from the Charlotte Court House.
Had I played the harlequin there, Sir, I think my next election
would be doubtful. I stole into the room with rather a nervous
walk, and was about selecting a very quiet position in a comer,
when your countryman, Lord Castlereagh, seeing my em-
* The New Mirror, v. i, 403.
440 John Randolph of Roanoke
barrassment came forward and, with an air of the most finished
politeness, insisted upon being my chaperon. For one hour,
Sir, he devoted himself to me and pointed out all persons of
notoriety in the crowd as they passed us in review. Such was
the fascination of his manners, I forgot for the moment that I
was speaking to the man who had sold his country's independ-
ence and his own; who had lent his aid to a licentious monarch
to destroy his queen, who, if guilty, might point to her hus-
band's conduct as the cause of her fall. But, Sir, I was spell-
bound for that hour; for never did I meet a more accomplished
gentleman, and yet he is a deceitful politician whose character
none can admire. An Irish Tory, Sir, I never could abide."'
Harvey also reports a distinguished Irish member of
Parliament as recalling a conversation between Randolph
and Maria Edgeworth at his table in these words :
"Spark produced spark, and, for three hours, they kept up
the fire until it ended in a perfect blaze of wit, humor and
repartee. It appeared to me that Mr. Randolph was more
intimately acquainted with Miss Edgeworth's works than she
was herself. He frequently quoted passages where her memory
was at fault; and he brought forward every character of any
note in all her productions. But what most astonished us
was his intimate knowledge of Ireland. Lady T. and myself
did nothing but listen and I was really vexed when some public
business called me away."'
Thomas Moore was likewise among the famous persons
whom Randolph met in England.
** Whom do you think I met under the gallery of the House
of Commons?" Randolph asked of Harvey. "You can't guess
and so I'll tell you. There was a spruce, dapper little gentle-
man sitting next me, and he made some trifling remark, to
which I replied. We thus entered into conversation, and I
found him a most fascinating, witty fellow. He pointed out
to me the distinguished members who were tmknown to me,
» The New Mirror, v. 2, 6. * Ibid,
Randolph as a Man 44^
and frequently gave them a friendly shot. At parting, he
handed me his card, and I read with some surprise, 'Mr.
Thomas Moore.' Yes, sir, it was the 'Bard of Erin'; and,
upon this discovery, I said to him: 'Well, Mr. Moore, I am
delighted to meet you thus, and I tell you, Sir, that I envy you
more for being the author of the 'Two-penny Post Bag' and
'Torn Crib's Memorial to Congress,' than for all your beautiful
songs which play the fool with young ladies' hearts.' He
laughed heartily at what he called 'my singular taste,' and we
parted the best friends imaginable."^
It is profitable to compare this description of Moore
with the description that Moore himself gives of Ran-
dolph in his journal under date of April 30, 1822.
"Laid in some cold meat, and went to the House of Com-
mons; avenues all blocked up with unsuccessful candidates
for admission. After several repulses, and at last giving it
up in despair, was taken in by Jemingham as one of the Cath-
olics on his list, Mr. Blunt, sat next Lord Limerick and Ran-
dolph, the famous American orator; a singular-looking man
with a young-old face, and a short, small body, mounted upon
a pair of high crane legs and thighs, so that, when he stood up,
you did not know when he was to end, and a squeaking voice
like a boy's just before breaking into manhood. His manner
too strange and pedantic, but his powers of eloquence (Irving
[Washington Irving] tells me) wonderful."^
A letter from Randolph to Dr. Brockenbrough men-
tions the fact that Robert Southey was another poet whom
he had met in England in 1822. Writing to this friend
from Roanoke, he says in a postscript :
"In sheer distress what to do with myself, I yesterday read
Don Juan — the 3, 4 and 5 cantos for the first time — ^fact I
assure you. It is diabolically good, the ablest I am inclined to
think of all his performances. I now fully comprehend the
« The New Mirror^ v. 2, 42.
« Memoirs, Gfc, of Thos, Moore, ed. by Lord John Russell, N. Y., v. i, 415.
442 John Randolph of Roanoke
case of the odium plus guatn iheologicum of the Lake School
toward this wayward genius. I am not sony that I had not
read the whole when I was in Southey's company. I could not
have conversed so tmreservedly as I did on the subject of
Bryon's writings."*
Altogether, Randolph achieved a distinct meastire of
social success in England. Upon that point, we need not
go further than Washington Irving, who was in London
in 1822:
"John Randolph,'* he wrote to Henry Brevoort, "is here
and has attracted much attention. He has been sought after
by people of the first distinction. I have met him repeatedly
in company and his eccentricity of appearance and manner
make him the more current and interesting; for, in high life
here, they are always eager after anything strange and peculiar.
There is a vast deal too of the old school in Randolph's manner,
the turn of his thoughts and the style of his conversation, which
seems to please very much."*
One of the results of Randolph's visit to England in
1822 was that, after his return to the United States, he
received more than one English publication on the subject
of slavery. Mentioning these publications in a letter to
Dr. Brockenbrough, he says: **They are from Wilber-
force, T. Clarkson, Adam Hodgson, and a larger pamphlet
entitled 'Negro Slavery as it Exists in the U. S. and the
West Indies, especially Jamaica'; that being held up as
the negro paradise by the W. I. body in England. " They
had, he further said, awakened him more than ever to the
momentous question of slavery. ^
There are no salient particulars to be added to what we
have told the reader about Randolph's visits to England
in 1824 and 1826; but there are some additional circum-
stances worthy of mention in connection with his visit to
« Garland, v. 2, 193.
' London, June 11, 1822, L»/e, 6rc., v. 2, 81. < Garland, v. 2, 193.
Randolph as a Man 443
England in 1830. The following extracts from a letter
which he wrote from London to Nathaniel Macon,
addressing him as "His old and dear friend, " give us some
idea of his movements in England in that year when he
was not too sick to move about at all :
** Last month, I spent about three weeks in the country. I
passed eight days most pleasantly, health excepted, at Bidles-
ton in Suffolk on the invitation of Rich'd Wilson, Esq. He
has been the architect of his own fortune, of which about 3,000
acres lie around his spacious and most hospitable mansion.
One of his daughters is married to a namesake and distant,
very distant, relative of mine, son of the late Bishop (but one)
of London. The coach took me within 10 miles of his house,
where his own carriage met me. He insisted upon paying me
this very unusual compliment, and, when I arrived at Sudbury,
I found his coach and servants waiting for me in the Inn Yard.
We coursed and killed hares — the dogs never letting one
escape. This you (who know the English hare to be nearly
or quite as large as our grey fox and much fleeter) will say was
fine sport. We shot also — ^that is Mr. Wilson did — every day,
and I sat upon a delightful pony and looked on. Once I made
out to pull a trigger and killed four pheasants. Eighteen and
a half brace were driven out of one preserve, of about a circular
acre, towards us, nearly all within shot, but I did not shoot that
day. One morning we killed with the 'long dogs' six hares.
On no occasion, did they run as many hundred yards from
where we started them; but doubled and twisted, poor things,
until the grey hounds doubled them up. On Sunday, the last
of the month (October), I accompanied my host to New
Market to be present at the Houghton meeting. . . .
' * Mr. Wilson being called home by the sudden death of a guest,
Capt. Rotheram, Capt. of the Royal Sovereign, Adm*l CoUing-
wood, the leading and victorious ship at Trafalgar, I, who had
been dreadfully sick at New Market, went on the next day to
Cambridge. Here I had to go to bed before dinner, and was
so ill that I despaired of seeing the vast improvements that
have been made since my last visit there. However, my best
friend opium brought me through. The additions to Trinity
444 John Randolph of Roanoke
College, St. John's, King's, and Corpus would alone furnish
forth an University. That to St. John's is the most beautiful
Court in the world, containing 112 apartments of 3 rooms
each, and a screen as beautiful, which forms a magnificent
cloister."
"Thursday, Dec'r. 9th, 1830.
**(The severest attack which I have had for a long time,
obliged me to give over writing yesterday. The distress and
anxiety of the last 18 hours are not to be described.)
"The new court, called TheKing's Court,' at Trinity College,
is even more extensive than that at St. John's. I dined with
the Fellows on the 5th of Nov'r, a Festival, (Gunpowder
Plot), in their noble hall, where 400 of that College alone sat
down to eight long tables. This vast room, with its old carved
rafters, (it has no ceiling, like Westminster Hall, &c.) was
warmed by one vast Brazier in the centre of living charcoal.
We had a Turbot as large as a Tea-board, and the 'audit ale'
restored my appetite for malt liquor, which the infernal
drench of London, miscalled Porter, had completely taken
away. The whole revenue of this most renowned College,
which boasts her Trinity of great men. Bacon, Barrow and
Newton (to whom may be added Lord Coke, Dryden, Bentley
and Ld. Byron) does not exceed £40,000 per ann. The
undergraduates, indeed, contribute largely (not less than £200
each), particularly the Fellow Commoners, sons of such noble-
men or gentlemen as are admitted to the Fellows' table.
Undergraduates are what we would call students. The
mastership of Trinity is worth £3,000 per ann., besides a
splendid Lodge (palace), in which the King and the Judges
take up their quarters, when they come to Cambridge. The
fellowships are moderately endowed, and there is no avoid-
able idleness here. With all my prepossessions and prejudices
against a foreign education, if I had a son, he should, at mature
age, spend at least two years at Trinity College, Cambridge.
The united grounds of this College, St. John's, Clare Hall and
King's form a promenade to which there is nothing [equal] at
Oxford. The celebrated mathematician, Babbage, has written
s strange work on the * Decline of Science in England' — strange
Randolph as a Man 445
at least for him, who is the successor of Newton and the only
Professor at Cambridge who does not lecture.
** After a short stay in town, I went to Chislehurst, in Kent,
to see my venerable friend, Mrs. Weddell, who, with her hus-
band (member for Yorkshire), accompanied Ld. Rockingham
in his triumphal procession down to York, after the Repeal of
the Stamp Act, which pacified the Empire She was sister-in-
law of Lord R. I spent three days and a half in Kent, one day
and night at Mr. Thos. Brandram's, at Lee, who has the most
desirable place that I know in England. . . .
"If I live, I will be at home on the feast of the new com; for
I perceive that we are not to have any old com even to bring
in the wheat harvest. 'Not an ear to the acre' is my brother
Harry's report to me. On Rappahannock too, there is a total
failure — ^it is not quite so bad with us, but the crop is a very
short one."
"Monday, Dec. 13, 1830.
"The last sentence was not finished until today. I have been
very much distressed by my complaint and, as the Packet,
which will carry this, does not sail until Thursday morning, I
have written by snatches. Saturday, I made out to dine with
the famous 'Beef Steaks'; which I had a great desire to do.
The scene was unique. Nothing permitted but Beef Steaks
and potatoes, port wine, punch, brandy and water, &c. The
broadest mirth and most unreserved freedoms among the
members; every thing and every body burlesqued; in short, a
party of school boys on a frolic could not have been more
unrestrained in the expression of their merriment. I was
delighted with the conviviality and heartiness of the company.
Among other toasts, we had that 'great friend of Liberty,
Prince Mettemich' and a great deal more of admirable foolery.
The company waited chiefly on themselves. The songs,
without exception, were mirth-stirring and well sung. In short,
here I saw a sample of old English manners; for the same tone
has been kept up from the foundation of the club — more than a
century. Nothing could be happier than the burlesque
speeches of some of the oflScers of the club; especially a Mr.
Stephenson (Vice P.) who answered to the call of* 'Boots!*
446 John Randolph of Roanoke
Maj. Gen. Sir Andrew Barnard presided admirably, and
another gallant oflBcer, Gen'l Sir Ronald Ferguson, greatly
contributed to our hilarity also. Admiral Dundas (not of the
Scotch clan) a new Ld of Admiralty, who came in for his full
share of humour and left-handed compliments, paid his full
quota towards the entertainment. In short, I have not
chuckled with laughter before since I left Virginia."'
In a letter to his niece, Randolph gives us another
glimpse of his movements in England in 1830:
"I have been out but twice from a sense of duty. On
Friday last to the Duke of Devonshire's and on Saturday to
dine with the Lord Mayor. The Duke of Devon has been
pointedly attentive to me during all my visits to England, and
I could not decline his invitation without apparent insensibility
not to say rudeness; and as I am not King I could not refuse
a Lord Mayor's invitation."*
In the London Morning Herald of Dec. 27, 1830, the
entertainment given by the Lord Mayor was pronoimced
**a very splendid" one, and the speech of thanks that it
drew from Randolph a ''very elegant" one.
An important appendix to this letter consists of certain
statements made by Peter Irving, the brother of Washing-
ton Irving, on the strength of information given him by
the latter in regard to Randolph when Randolph was in
England in 1830:
"Randolph, however well informed on points of etiquette,
had his own notions about doing things, and I have heard Mr.
Irving give an amusing account of his presentation at court
in London as it came under his own notice. Mr. McLane and
Mr. Irving called for him in a carriage, and they found him
prepared to accompany them with black coat and black small-
clothes, with knee buckles, white stockings and shoes with gold
buckles, a sword, and a little black hat. They looked wonder-
« Sou. Lit. Mess.t Richm., Nov. 1856, 382-385.
' London, Dec. 21, 1830, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 447
ingly at his dress, so likely with his odd figure to attract
observation. He pointed to his gold buckles. *No sham
about them ; Rimdell and Bridge by !' To some observa-
tions as to the propriety of his dress, *I wear no man's livery
by !* But, said Mr. Irving, the object of a court costiune is
to avoid awkwardness and challenge; there is a convenience in
it, and, at all events, you don't want a sword. *0h, now
Irving, as to a sword, you need not pretend to teach me about
that. My father wore a sword before me by .* Mr.
Irving explained that the sword belonged to a different cos-
tume, but was out of place in that dress. This seemed to
strike Randolph, and he unbuckled his sword afterwards, and
left it in the carriage. As he was about to enter the ante-
chamber, where the foreign ministers are in waiting, he was,
as Mr. Irving had feared, stopped by the usher. Mr. Irving
immediately explained who he was, and he was permitted
to pass. 'There now, Randolph,' said he, 'you see one of
the inconveniences of being out of costume.' In the ante-
chamber, the foreign ministers eyed him curiously. Admitted
to the presence chamber, he preceded Mr. Irving, made his
bow to Royalty in his turn, and then passed before other
members of the Royal Family. As he went by the Duke
of Sussex, the latter beckoned Mr. Irving. 'Irving,' said he,
with his thumb reversed over his right shoulder, and moving it
significantly up and down, half suppressing a laugh at the
same time, 'who's your friend Hokey-Pokey?' Mr. Irving,
jealous for the honor of his country, replied with emphasis:
'That, Sir, is John Randolph, the United States Minister to
Russia, and one of the most distinguished orators of the
United States.' Sometime afterwards, Mr. Irving was dining
with the Duke of Sussex, and the latter inquired after McLane,
who had returned to his own country; then, pursuing his
inquiries, he added, with a significant smile: 'And how is our
friend, Hokey-Pokey?' Randolph, said Mr. Irving, in con-
cluding these anecdotes, a long, gaunt, thin poke of a fellow,
with no beard, small features, bright eyes, attracted attention
wherever he went. He was queer, but always wore the air
and stamp of a gentleman. I asked what impression he
made by his conversational powers: 'He was remarkable in
448 John Randolph of Roanoke
this respect,' he replied, *bat he was not at home among the
London wits. I dined wtthliim when Sydney Smith and
others were present, but he Sti not shine; he was not in his
beat."*
Since such profuse profanity as marks this narrative
has never, so far as we know, been imputed to Randolph
in his lucid hours by anyone else, we cannot but indulge
the idea that it was simply the sort that gave point to one
of Franklin's famous stories. A fellow, in relating a dis-
pute that had arisen between Queen Anne and the Arch-
bishop of Canterbury concerning a vacant mitre, which
the Queen wished to bestow on a person, whom the Arch-
bishop thought unworthy of it, made both the Queen and
the Archbishop swear three or four thumping oaths in
every sentence of the dispute. A by-stander, filled with
surprise, asked : ' ' But did the Queen and the Archbishop
swear so at one another ? " * * Oh no, no ! " said the fellow,
**that is only my way of telling the story. "
Now that we have had portraiture of Randolph as he
was abroad, we might as well have a little caricature
besides, and this is copiously supplied to us by "Julius."
"On his first arrival in London," Juliu^ declares, **all eyes
were struck with his figure in the streets. The human form
from all parts of the globe was to be seeh there, but nothing
like his. It seemed to belong to a class by itself; long, lean
and loose-jointed — a withered face, a shrunken body, and the
whole expression peculiar and startling. Many who passed
him turned around to take another look. How mysterious!
exclaimed one; how outlandish! another. A term to which
the English are addicted. His complexion was death-like;
sometimes he moved about on foot, and sometimes rode a
pony. When saluting people, his voice would mount up to a
high shrill key, as if he were hallooing. The particulars of his
dress were obscured by a long cloak, which, in one respect,
claimed resemblance to the doublet of Gaffer Gray — it was not
« Life fire, cf W. I., v. 2, 439, 442.
Randolph as a Man 449
very new. As it came tight about him, or waved in the wind,
many a sidelong glance did it get from the passing brokers of
Monmouth St. ' . . .
"His grotesque aspect, the object of popular stare, and scien-
tific speculation ; his everlasting attempts at effect, whether in
conduct or conversation; his harangues given out in accents
so novel and with no poor rivalry of the fame and fashion of
Anacharsis Cloots or Sir Walter Scott's 'Wamba,' his diverting
lapses from the observances of the world, his profound obei-
sance to rank, which, though it overflowed in temporary good
nature at that epoch of his life and travels, kept showing itself
in ways exquisitely ludicrous, all this and more; how can I ever
forget it.""
Then, after speaking of the curiosity and merriment,
excited by Randolph's appearance and conversation,
Jtdius continues in this manner :
"It was a scene sui generis j novel even for London. Re-
peated it was with variations: *Hoby's boots forever, so help
him Heaven and Manton's guns — his rascally overseer who
had cheated him — the roundheads, how he hated them — the
cavaliers, how he loved them — Virginia, old Virginia, true to
Charles — the vermin in his own country that fattened on the
public crib; he gave it to them — that he did and would;
Bladensburg; Yazoo; the Yankees; the Negroes; Mason's and
Dixon's line; the man in the moon; everything danced in the
astounding gallimaufry. To the sensibilities, to the restraints,
bodily and of mind, to the multiplied obligations and habitudes,
to all the anxious and assiduous cultivation that go to make
up the gentleman he was a stranger. His irregular and un-
disciplined temper was the parent of rudeness in him, and
his vanity hurried him into offences against good sense and
decorum."^
In another place Julius describes Randolph as a mon-
opolist or a mute when conversation went its rounds; by
turns a misanthrope and a Merry Andrew. -♦
' J. R. Abroad and at Hornet 3. " Id., 5. */d., 8. < M, 13,
VOL. II — 29
450 John Randolph of Roanoke
And not more indignant was Mrs. Malaprop over criti-
cism of her diction than Randolph must have been when
even his fastidious orthoepy was impeached by Julius.
**True scholarship," said Julius, "repelled his pretensions.
Tried by chastened standards, they came under the sentence
which his burlesque obtrusions of them provoked. It was
made known by the Oxonians in guarded, yet significant jeers.
Neither his Latinity nor his English could pass. His syntax,
nay his very orthoepy, (a) was remarked to be as defective as
his infringements of the canons of taste were perpetual both
in his selection of topics and manner of treating them. It was
really hard to determine whether in his furor lingua Nature
or Priscian got most blows from him."'
The immediate occasion for this elaborate arraignment
was a note appended by Randolph to his speech on Re-
trenchment and Reform in the House in 1828 in which he
had instituted the comparison between the relative quali-
fications of Rush and Caligula's horse for a post of public
responsibility. * The deadly arrow, which Randolph shot
at Rush in this note, went to its mark all the more surely
for the accompanying lines, with which it was feathered :
'* A few days ago, I stumbled upon the following stanza of an
unfinished poem on the glories and worthies of our
Administration :
** ' And as for R., his early locks of snow.
Betray the frozen region that's below.
Though Jove upon the race bestow'd some fire;
The gift was all exhausted by the Sire,
A sage consum'd what thousands well might share
And ashes only fell upon the heir!*
These lines are the only article of the growth, produce or manu-
facture of the country, north of the Patapsco, that I have
' J. R, abroad and at home, 18.
' Memoirs of J. Q, Adams, July 26, 1828, v. 8, 64.
Randolph as a Man 45 1
knowingly used since the Tariff Bill passed. They are by a
witty son of a witty sire — as Bums sings — 'A true gude fellow's
get.'"'
It was during his last sojotim in London that Randolph
uttered his well-known paraphrase of the excuse given by
Adam for eating fruit from the forbidden tree. He had
been invited by Lord to take lunch with him,
but, when on his way to the lunch, he stopped to call on a
lady, and was so agreeably entertained by her conversa-
tion that he was still enjoying her society when the limch
was served. Afterwards when he joined Lord ,
and was taxed with being late, he replied: '*The woman
tempted me and I did eat. " *
In one of his letters to his niece, Randolph pronotmced
Friendship, Love, and Religion the only soiu'ces from which
happiness can be derived. * When he was not unbalanced,
or unduly swayed by prejudice or temper, there can be no
doubt that his heart was a truly generous, compassionate,
and tender one. Occasional presents of silver and fre-
quent presents of books were among the tokens which he
was in the habit of giving of his friendship or love. On
one occasion, he presented a young lady with a Hebrew
Lexicon bearing this inscription on its fly-leaf: **To a
young lady learning Hebrew from an old gentleman who
knows nothing of it, and is past learning. "^
Francis Scott Key, he wrote to Dudley, might have any
one of his horses except only his English mare and Corne-
lia^; and to Van Buren he gave a fine saddle-horse and
wished to give a handsome pair of carriage-horses besides. •
Not only did he offer to pledge his credit in aid of James
« Bouldin, 317 (note).
■ Recollections of a Long Life, by Jos. Packard, 1 10.
'Roanoke, Nov. 20, 1825, Bryan MSS.
4 Letter to Elizabeth T. Coalter, 1825, Dr. R. B. Cannichael MSS.
» Feb. 4, 181 7, LeUers loaY. R,, 185.
• Van Buren Papers^ Libr. Cong.
452 John Randolph of Roanoke
Monroe when they were friends; but, on one occasion,
when his friend, Judge Thomas T. Bouldin, then a young
man, was in a community, where he was but little known,
and was experiencing some difficulty in obtaining a secur-
ity as a fiduciary, the shrill voice of Randolph was heard,
calling out above the clamor of a crowd that he would
become his security. The act. Judge Bouldin said, at
once lifted him out of his dilemma and placed him on a
high elevation.'
How Randolph extended to his nephews and his other
youthful prot6g6s the same liberal measure of his botmty
that he might have extended to a son we shall presently see.
Appeals of suffering or want met with a ready response
at his hands. * * He was charitable, ' * Benton tells us, * * but
chose to conceal the hand that administered relief. I
have often seen him send little children out to give to the
poor."'
On one occasion, we find him bringing a yotmg boy
down from Roanoke to Richmond so that he could receive
proper surgical attention. On another, it is said that he
turned his horses and plows into the fields of an absent yoimg
friend whose crop was being smothered by weeds and grass.
Among the written scraps which he preserved, was a brief
note from one Richard Knowles, who would seem to have
been an overseer at one time at Bizarre. It thanks him
for a gift of wine, which the note says that the recipient
would gladly acknowledge in his own hand but for his low
state of health. ^
The journal which he kept, when he was on the Concord^
brings to our knowledge the fact that he was thoughtful
enough to send a box of Chateau Margaux to the steerage
of that ship.-* ** Although I do not deal in bows and
humble servants and all that trash, yet I have some of the
' Bouldin, 8 1 . *30 Yrs, ' View, 474. 3 J. R. 's Diary.
i Va. Hist. Soc.
Randolph as a Man 453
milk of human kindness in my composition,** he once
wrote to Nicholson. ' And so he had ; and more than most
men have.
A truthful, though quaint, summary was that of the
English traveller, John Lambert :
** Ardent and affectionate in his disposition, he is susceptible
of strong and permanent affection; but, if injured, he exhibits
but little of that mild forbearance which is inculcated in the
gentle precepts of our Holy Religion. His private history,
however, abounds with evidences of the most himiane and
philanthropic feeling.** *
Writing to Theodore Dudley of the death of a trusted and
favorite overseer of his, he gives this accoimt of the event :
*'Mr. Curd breathed his last on Thursday morning, half
past three o'clock, after a most severe illness, which lasted
sixteen days. I insisted upon his coming up here, where he
had every possible aid that the best medical advice and most
assiduous nursing could afford him. During the last week of
his sickness, I was never absent from the house but twice,
about an hour each time, for air and exercise; I sat up with
him, and gave him almost all his medicines, with my own hand,
and saw that every possible attention was paid to him. This
is to me an unspeakable comfort ; and it pleased God to support
me under this trying scene by granting me better health than I
had experienced for seven years. On Thursday evening, I
followed him to the grave; and, soon after, the effects of the
fatigue and distress of mind that I had suffered prostrated my
strength and spirits, and I became ill. Three successive nights
of watching were too much for my system to endure; but I am
now better, although weak and giddy. I was with him, when
he died, without a groan or change of feature. My servants,
also, have been all sick, except Essex, Hetty, and Nancy."*
' Feb. 4, 1800, Nicholson MSS.
» Travels Through Canada & the U. S,,iSi6, v. 2, 422.
» Roanoke, Sept. 22, 181 1, Letters to a Y, R., 104.
454 John Randolph of Roanoke
On the same day, Randolph wrote to John Taylor, of
Caroline :
**This man was an overseer, Wotdd to God the public had
such, for he was of great skill and judgment in his calling,
indefatigable, laborious, well-behaved and hanestlll Although
at stated wages, ever mindful of his duty and the interest of his
employer. Under his suspices, my plantation affairs were
rapidly travelling in the very opposite direction to those of the
public." «
Jacob Harvey was right when he said that, if Randolph
'*did take a fancy, the rank of the person never seemed to
weigh with him for a moment," and that he admired espe-
cially those who never pretended to more knowledge than
they actually possessed, but imderstood thoroughly what
they did know. *
Indeed, Randolph's sensibility to the sufferings of others
was almost morbid. During his first visit to England, he
wrote to his niece on one occasion :
'*At Worcester, in driving into the Hop Pole Inn yard,
the postillion had nearly killed a poor girl with a child in
her arms. She was thrown down, but God be praised! neither
were hurt. I would not endure what I felt, while the stispense
lasted, for any consideration."^
We are told by James Bouldin that Randolph's feelings
were once so moved by the recollection of *'two little hares"
hanging by the neck, upon which he had come, when
hunting in his boyhood, that tears stood in his eyes.^
In fact, we are asked to believe that his susceptibility
to compassionate impulses even took in the vegetable
kingdom.
' Roanoke, Sept. 22, 1811, Mass. Hist. Soc,
* The New Mirror, v. i, 345.
» Garland, v. 2, 184.
4 Bouldin, 80.
Randolph as a Man 455
"Mr. Randolph wotdd not permit even a switch to be cut
anywhere near the house (at Roanoke),** Wm. H. Elliott, who
was a schoolmate of Tudor Randolph, says in his School Boy
Reminiscences of John Randolph, "Without being aware of
such an interdiction, I one day committed a serious trespass.
Tudor and I were one day roving in the woods near the house,
when I observed a neat hickory plant, about an inch thick,
which I felled. Tudor expressed his regret after seeing what I
had done, saying he was afraid his uncle would be angry. I
went immediately to Mr. Randolph, and informed him of
what I had ignorantly done, and expressed regret for it. He
took the stick, looked pensively at it for some seconds, as if
commiserating its fate. Then looking at me more in sorrow
than in anger, he said. 'Sir I would not have had it done for
fifty Spanish milled dollars !' I had seventy-five cents in my
pocket, at that time called four-and-sixpence, and had some
idea of offering it to the owner of the premises as an equivalent
for the damage I had done, but, when I heard about the fifty
Spanish milled dollars, I was afraid of insulting him by offer-
ing the meagre atonement of seventy-five cents. I wished very
much to get away from him, but thought it rude to withdraw
abruptly without knowing whether he was done with me.
'Did you want this for a cane?* *No, Sir.' *No, you are not
old enough to need a cane. Did you want it for any partictdar
purpose?* 'No, Sir, I only saw it was a pretty stick, and
thought I'd cut it.* *We can be justified in taking animal life,
only to furnish us food, or to remove some hurtful object out of
the way. We cannot be justified in taking even vegetable life
without having some useful object in view.* He then quoted
the following lines from Cowper:
(< (
I would not enter on my list of friends.
Tho' graced with polished manners and fine sense,
Yet wanting sensibility, the man
Who needlessly sets foot upon a worm.*
'Now God Almighty planted this thing, and you have killed
it without any adequate object. It would have grown to a
large nut-tree, in whose boughs numerous squirrels would have
gambolled and feasted on its fruit. Those squirrels in their
456 John Randolph of Roanoke
turn might have furnished food for some himian beings.' Here
he made a pause, but looked as if he had something more to
say; yet only added, *I hope and believe, Sir, you will never do
the like again.' 'Never, Sir, never!' He got up and put
the stick in a comer, and I made my escape to Tudor in an
adjacent room, where he had remained an invisible but sym-
pathizing auditor of this protracted rebuke. It was sometime
before I could cut a switch or a fishing rod without feeling
that I was doing some sort of violence to the economy of the
Vegetable Kingdom."^
In his John Randolph, Henry Adams says sarcastically
that he refrains from inquiring too deeply what the children
of Charlotte County would have said to a suggestion of
climbing Randolph's knee*; a remark brought out by a
sentence in Randolph's speech in the House, in 1828, on
Retrenchment and Reform which related to his proposed
retirement : * * The very children will climb around my knees
to welcome me. *' The sneer is a wanton one. When Ran-
dolph said that he believed that there was no man in the
world so fond of children as he was, he had some color of
right to make the assertion. There are homes in South-
side Virginia today, such as that of Mrs. J. Spooner Epes,
of Petersburg, a descendant of Edward Booker and of the
Gaineses, of Mossingford, in Charlotte County, who are
descendants of Wm. M. Watkins, in which Randolph's
love of children has been handed down as an unbroken
tradition.^ '*Do not let Edward forget me, " is one mes-
sage that he sends to Nicholson about his son, Edward ^ and,
some three years afterwards, he writes again to Nicholson :
**Do not let Edward forget *Rannie. ' '*^ And, when in
due season, Edward enjoyed the companionship of a little
sister, Randolph did not forget her either in his letters to
* Bouldin, 78.
» P. 295.
J Letter from Elizabeth Booker Epes to the author, Sept. 9, 19 18.
4 Bizarre, July i, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
s Bizarre, Sept. 27, 1806, Id,
Randolph as a Man 457
Nicholson.* In another letter to Nicholson, he refers to
the Nicholson children as **the papooses. "
* It would delight me very much to spend a few weeks with
you/' he once wrote to Francis Scott Key. **I would even
try to be an usher in your school. [Mr. Key was teaching his
own children.] At least I could teach your younger children
to read. Give my love to them all and to their mother." *
After dining on one occasion with the dignified and
elegant Mrs. Bell, he wrote to Theodore Dudley: *'I dined
there a few days ago and have quite overcome the coyness
of little Mary Anne, who says, *I love Mr. Randolph. * "^
Mrs. Joseph M. Daniel, of Charlotte Coimty, used to tell
how highly gratified he was when he was on a visit to her
house, and one of her little girls went into her garden, and
culled a bouquet of beautiful flowers, and presented them
to him. **She had chosen the old man for her valentine, "
he declared, and, the next time he visited Mrs. Daniel, he
brought the little girl some fruit, saying gracefully, as he
placed it in her hands : * * Flowers produce fruit. * * A little
later, when a member of the Daniel family visited Roa-
noke, he found that the flowers had been preserved in water
on Randolph's centre table.'* In one of his letters to
** Master Joseph A. Clay, " the brother of John Randolph
Clay, Randolph sends his love to *'dear little Anna," the
sister of the Clays. Repeatedly, in his correspondence
with his niece, he sends gentle messages to her little sister,
whose shyness he was determined to overcome, as he had
overcome that of Mary Anne Bell. **Let the taciturn
little Anne make up for me a bulletin of your health every
other day and send it to town for the postman, and, by this
means, she will break the ice of her reserve, I hope, ** is one
' Bizarre, Aug. 27, 1804, Id,
* Garland, v. 2, 95.
J Richm., Mar. 20, 1814, Letters toaY. R., 156.
4 Bouldin, 75.
458 John Randolph of Roanoke
of his injunctions to Elizabeth T. Coalter. And, later in
the same letter, he adds : * * It we were together, Anne cx)uld
read to us ; you would walk about the room, aad I should
now and then throw in a word which shotdd produce a fol-
lowing of suit from you both. God bless you both ! This
is no senseless or insincere ejaculation.**' But the ice
finally gave way, we know, because six months later he
wrote to his niece : * ' Dear little Anne, I return her love
most sincerely and, if I were near enough, you and she and
mammy [Mammy Aggy] should be my almost inseparable
companions. ** ' In a letter to Nicholson, he asks him to
present his compliments to a Mr. Cooke and his good
family not forgetting Miss Susan, to whom he dared send
his best love. **Tell them, ** he further said in this letter,
"that Sophia attracted all eyes and many hearts at the
British Envoy's f6te, where she danced like a sylph. "^ (a)
Randolph spoke but the truth when he said on one
occasion that to love and be loved was a necessity of his
nature.
At one time or another, he took under his affectionate
patronage at Roanoke no less than four different lads :
Carter Coupland, a grandson of his friend, Mrs. Tabb,
John Randolph Clay, the son of his friend, Joseph Clay,
of Philadelphia, and John Randolph Bryan and Thomas
F. Bryan, the sons of his friend, Joseph Bryan. In 1811,
he wrote to Theodore Dudley:* 'Carter Coupland became
a member of my family a few days since. Some society
was indispensable to me and he is a well-disposed boy, who,
I trust, will relieve in some degree my uncomfortable
situation. ** ^ In the same year, Carter was taken sick at
Roanoke, and he had made such a favorable impression
upon Randolph that the latter wrote to Theodore Dudl^
« Feb. 18, 1822, Dr. R. B. Carmichad MSS.
• Dec. 29, 1822, Bryan MSS.
i Geoiigetown, Jan 22. 1812, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
4 Roanoke, Aug, 12, 181 1, Letters toaY, R., 97.
Randolph as a Man 459
that he felt that he was too strongly bound to him by his
kind attentions to himself and family to think of leaving
him under such circumstances. '
When he leamt that Joseph Clay had died, leaving
John Randolph Clay and other children behind him, he
wrote at once to Theodore Dudley, who was then in Phila-
delphia: "I consider Randolph as my son"*; and, as his
son, Randolph treated him from that time on, taking
him under his roof at Roanoke in 1815; educating him at
Ararat and Mr. Kilpatrick's school in Halifax County;
appointing him Secretary of Legation at St. Petersburg,
and opening up to him the diplomatic career, in the cotu'se
of which he became charg6 d'Affaires at that court, and
Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to
Peru.^ At times, when Randolph was in London, after
leaving St. Petersbiu'g, he made some querulous com-
plaints to Clay about the "careless and slovenly'* manner
in which Clay "put up'* his letters to him and the like*;
but the affectionate relations between the two really
lasted until Randolph's death, and, among the most
sensible letters known to us, are some that Judge Leigh,
who had become a sort of third father to Clay, wrote to
him in regard to the obligations of gratitude and deference
that he owed to Randolph. ^ Clay was little more than
a youth, when he accompanied Randolph to Russia, and
the barbaric splendor of its "mighty monarch," as Clay
once termed the Czar, and the pompous ceremonial of its
court threatened to turn his head at one time,* but he
appears to have acqtiitted himself very well on the whole
in the discharge of the responsibilities imposed on him by
Randolph's departiu-e from St. Petersbiu-g; and his sub-
' Roanoke, Oct. 20, 181 1, Letters to a Y. R., ill,
•Roanoke, Sept. 8, 1811, Id., 102.
i Works of Jas. Buchanan, ed. by Jno. Bassett Moore, v. 2, 193 (note 2).
< E.g. London, Jan. 15, 183 1, Clay Papers ^ Libr. Cong.
$ Halifax, Mar. 10, & Aug. 10, 1833, Id,
•J. R. Clay to Richm. Enq,, Jan. 17, 1831, Clay Papers, Libr. Cong.
46o John Randolph of Roanoke
sequent career appears to have been such as to justify the
care that Randolph had bestowed upon him.
When Randolph took a boy under his patronage, the
process was so much like that of complete adoption that
the mother could not always refrain from exhibiting a
little jealousy, and there are letters extant from Randolph
to Clay's mother which must have been a severe test of
her patience, unless she was constituted very differently
from most fatuous parents. In one letter, he told her
that he had just seen his little namesake at school and
that, after being somewhat laughed at by his school-
fellows for his helplessness and effeminacy, he was now
as manly and as hardy as the best of them. ' In another
letter, written to Mrs. Clay some three years later, when
he was sending the lad home to Philadelphia to see her,
he expressed himself in terms of such candor that her
feelings must have been decidedly mixed. The magis-
terial tone of the letter, however, can readily be forgotten
when the parental oversight and affection, of which John
Randolph Clay had been the recipient at Roanoke, and
the final success of the discipline, to which he had been
subjected, are duly borne in mind. This is what Ran-
dolph said :
** You will find him, Madam, less improved in knowledge of
books than he probably would have been, had he remained
in Philadelphia. The cause of his slow progress is to be foimd
in his indolence and preference of play to work, natural to
children of his age and which fear of the rod or desire to excel
can alone overcome. When he shall feel the disposition to
learn, from either of these causes, he willmake no slow progress,
his natural capacity being above mediocrity. But, if he has
not been taught book-learning, he has gained a much more
valuable knowledge and, in place of some bad habits (if a child
of his age, when he came to live with me, can be said to have
had any habits), which I trust he has laid aside forever, he has
* Georgetown, Dec. 13, 1816, Clay MSS., Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 461
acquired, I hope, some good ones. The Persian youth in the
days of Cyrus, when they were feared for their prowess and
respected for their virtues, were taught to shoot the bow and to
ride on horseback with skill, but above all, to speak the Truth —
which it is as necessary to teach as Greek or Mathematics;
or, ten chances to one, it will never be learned. On this
subject, I think it my solemn and bounden duty to tell you that
I have had much trouble with your son; I hope I have eradi-
cated his propensity to fibbing. To do this, I imposed on him
an almost Pythagorean silence. Great praters have a tempta-
tion, hardly resistible, to exaggeration and falsehood, and the
first thing necessary for a child to be taught, after he has
learned to talk, is to hold his tongue and not obtrude upon his
seniors and betters the pert and crude effusions of his mind.
On this subject, let me entreat you to have an eye to the
smallest germination of deceit or falsehood, dissimulation or
simulation, and, as you value your sons' respectability in this
world or welfare in the world to come, to punish it exemplarily.
Let not the hand of Dr. Physick be stayed by a false htmianity
from eradicating, whilst yet it may be done, a cancerous or
schirrous tumour. Let the knife and the cautery, potential or
actual, be fearlessly used, where the art of Surgery shall indi-
cate their application. I sincerely hope you will find no occa-
sion for them. The boy is a fine boy and has long seemed
sensible, when I have talked with him, of the folly as well as
wickedness of untruth.
"2. He has been taught to obey, promptly, unhesitatingly.
To preserve this invaluable habit, the spirit of conmiand must
be exercised over him ; it must, otherwise, be lost.
"3. He has been taught to rise early and to be temperate in
his meats and drink. Milk has been substituted for that
enervating diet drink, miscalled Tea. Let him not destroy his
stomach by recurring to its habitual use. If milk is not to be
had, give him water, cream and sugar, but let it be drunk cold.
**3. {sic) All his effeminate habits of flannels, nightdresses
&c : were laid aside from the commencement of the summer of
18 15. His constitution has been toughened and hardened by
habits of exercise in the open air. Let them not be substituted
by warm parlors, a bed chamber with a fire in it, ciutains and
4^2 John Randolph of Roanoke
sedentary habits, which must render him a burthen to himsdf
and to others, and probably open for him a premature grave.
What is all the learning in the world to him who has not
strength to use it? It is armour that he cannot wield — the
weight of which crushes instead of defending him.
"4. He has been instructed in the great and peculiar Truths
of Religion. The depravity of man — ^the prepenseness of his
heart to idols, not carved images, indeed, like that of Jugger-
naut, but as soul-destroying; the creatures of Ambition,
Avarice, Pride, Vanity and Sensuality, 'Hatred and Envy and
Malice and all Uncharitableness from the which, in all time of
our prosperity as well as of our Tribulation, Good Lord!
deliver us. Amen.'
**I have thus, my dear Madam, given you the undisguised
sentiments of a sincere and therefore plain (perhaps too blunt)
friend of your son. An obstinate constitutional preference of
the true over the agreeable has thro life proved a bar to my
success (as 'tis called) in the world. I am satisfied to have
told the truth and to have done my duty; and to the good
Providence of God I leave the result; to him who will overrule
and set at naught the councils of the children of this world,
who are wiser in their generation than the Children of Light.
Congratulating you all on the meeting, I am. Madam."*
After leaving school, John Randolph Clay thought of
practicing law in Virginia, and several letters from Ran-
dolph to him bear upon this topic. On one occasion,
Clay asked Randolph's advice in this connection, and he
received the following reply. It suggests the idea that
Randolph did not think that the young man was as labori-
ous as he might have been :
** You ask my advice. I have a poor opinion of its efficacy.
Let me point out to you the example of Mr. L. and also of Mr.
J. Marshall of Charlotte C. H., who has succeeded by dint of
sheer labour, without Mr. Leigh's abilities. If you are not
impressed with the indispensable necessity of industry, words
from me will never make the impression. 'Idleness is the
> Baltimore, Mar. 14, 1820, Clay MSS., Libr. Cong,
Randolph as a Man 463
•
mother of all Vice* says the proverb; but Laziness is the father
of Idleness. There is no recipe for making a lazy man work.
He will see his family want; he will want himself — ^he will
borrow, beg, or steal; but work he will not. I have lived
long enough to know that it is folly in the extreme to under-
take to regulate the conduct of others. The motive must be
within and not without. There must be an inherent love of
eventual profit over present gratification, without which the
greatest abilities are a curse rather than an advantage to their
possessor."'
Indeed, there are indications in a previous letter from
Randolph to John Randolph Clay that Randolph deemed
his prot6g6 a little slow in taking up the task of earning a
livelihood.
**Has the example of Peyton Berkeley," he said, '*no effect
upon you? See that young gentleman teaching school rather
than biuthen his parent, although his father has a large landed
estate. If I were in your place, I would propose to Mr. Leigh
to teach his little girls at vacant hours."*
The two Bryan lads became inmates of Roanoke in
18 16, and left it for their home in Georgia in 1820; and
during their residence at Roanoke they were pupils, first
at Ararat, and then at Mr. Kilpatrick's school, in Halifax
County. When they left Roanoke, Randolph purchased
a vehicle for them at Petersburg, supplied them with a
horse from his own stable to match another that had been
purchased for them, accompanied them as far as North
Carolina on their homeward journey, and, on leaving
them, placed them under the care of Quashee, one of his
most experienced drivers, who drove them all the way to
Savannah. He had grown so attached to the boys that
it must have cost him a severe struggle to part with them ;
but who could have resisted such an appeal as this from
» Washington, Dec. 16, 1827, Clay MSS., Libr. Cong.
•May 17, 1826, Id.
4^4 John Randolph of Roanoke
their mother, who had evidently begun to feel that, if
they were detained much longer at Roanoke, they might
become weaned from their blood relations :
*' I begin to long to embrace my children, and they, I am sure
must wish to see their mother, sisters and brother. A longer
separation cannot, I think, be of any material advantage to
them; on the contrary, those charming feelings, that should
ever be kept alive in a family, may in their infant minds be
forever lost, if much longer absent from their nearer and dearer
ties. If the estate and myself are successful in our crops, I
wish the boys to spend next winter with me, provided it meets
your approbation.**
In this same letter, Delia Bryan spoke of a third son
of hers — ^Joseph — as a noble-hearted boy, and a little
tactlessly added that he loved her with all the ardor that
her son Randolph once did. ' The letter wounded Ran-
dolph's feelings, but we can hardly regret the fact when
we find that it drew from her this second letter, which is
another testimonial to the nobler side of Randolph's nature.
** It is with feelings of the truest grief that I now address you.
That I should for a moment give you pain by an involuntary
expression, is real agony to think of. Believe me, Mr. Ran-
dolph, that my heart never in its right mood accus'd you of
anything that could volimtarily take from my five joys. In my
reflecting moments, I have severely reprimanded myself for the
involuntary expression, and f ear*d that you would feel in its full
extent that which I never intended should have so much force.
"I can scarcely bear to offer an apology for myself, and yet !
if you will reflect that I have for many, many months been
wishing my sons to visit me, and that you yourself desir'd it,
you will make some allowance for my feelings when I received
Randolph's letter. To say more on this mortifying subject
is I hope unnecessary. I have ever view*d you as my first and
best friend, and, for worlds, I would not think otherwise.
Suffer me to hope that you will ever continue to me and the
» Nonchalance, Apr. 23, 1819, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 465
children of your Friend that kindness and interest which I
have ever been proud to boast of. Let us, / beg you, hear
from you as often as you may find it agreeable to write, and
believe that you will ever find in me and my children sincere
and warm friends. My father and his excellent wife have
been anticipating the arrival of my sons at Rose Hill [on the
Eastern Shore of Maryland] for the same length of time nearly
that I have, and their reception there will be of the tenderest
and most gratifying nature to me. How long they will remain,
I know not. As you have not drawn on Major Screven for the
money we are so desirous you should receive, he says he will
try to send rice on to Baltimore, and by that means procure
a suflScient stun for you. Indeed, I fear my boys have been
a very great expense to you."*
As to the two Bryans, when they were at Roanoke, they
formed a devoted attachment to Randolph which never
ceased, except with their lives. Writing to his brother,
John Randolph, from St. Mary's College, in 1827, Tom
Bryan [T. M. F.] said:
** Perhaps there is no place with which I am better acquainted
than with Roanoke, and I may say that there is but one place
for whichi feel more sincere attachment. Clay, you say, is
very little changed, and that Mr Randolph is the same that he
always was to us. How could he change! A man having
such a soul as John Randolph has but one face for his friends.
I am glad to hear you say that he is better than he has been;
perhaps your visit may have had the effect of reviving him. • I
remember when I went to see him in Washington in 1826,
seeing me had a very marked effect upon his health. He
shows his joy at seeing a friend he loves."*
Then, after quoting an extract from a letter which he
had just received from John Randolph of Roanoke, Tom
continues: ** Brother Randolph, I don't know but I feel a
kind of reverence and love for that man. "
» Nonchalance, Dec. 6, 1819, Bryan MSS.
•Oct. 16, 1827, Bryan MSS.
vou II. — 30
466 John Randolph of Roanoke
These feelings were fully shared by John Randolph
Bryan ; and, to realize how fully, one has but to turn to the
communications in which, many years after the death of
Randolph, he roimdly denoimced the parts of Bouldin's
Home Reminiscences of John Randolph of Roanoke which
were derogatory to his god-father. "My first meeting
with Mr. Randolph," he said in one of them, "was in
Baltimore in 1816, and I can never forget the sweet way
he met my brother and self. * * " In the same letter, he said
that John Randolph Clay, Thomas Bryan, and he were
treated by Randolph as if they were his children, and that
one or the other of them often slept in the same bed with
him, and that, when Randolph was absent from them, he
often wrote to them. "He took an interest in their man-
ners, language [and] reading," he declared, "and niade
them say their prayers and often read to them."* In
another place, in the same letter, Bryan says: "In his
intercourse with us boys, the sweetness of his manner and
considerateness to our bltmders and awkwardness was
truly parental.*'^ Even after the Bryans had returned
to their home in Georgia, Randolph's affectionate interest
in them underwent no change.
*'I was with him in New York in 1823," John Randolph
Bryan further says, *'and the following year he took the
trouble, when I was a Midshipman, to pay a visit to the Pea-
cbck in Hampton Roads to see me. On my return from sea in
1 827, 1 stayed a month with him at his home. Returning from
sea again, I received great kindness in 1829 during the Virginia
Convention. He treated me as a son, and on an occasion,
when Mr. Wickham had all the prominent members of that
illustrious body, who composed that Convention, to dine
with him (such as Madison, Monroe, Giles, Barbour, Chief
Justice Marshall, Leigh, &c.), he took me with him to the
* Letter to Mr. Robertson, Mar. 27, 1878, Bryan MSB
^Ihid.
I Ibid.
JOHN RANDOLPH mnVAH. JOHN HANDOLPH-a fl
Fiom th« oiigiiial puntod [or Job
lad DOW owiud by John Stamrt Biyui
Randolph as a Man 467
dinner and gave me an opportunity, never to be forgotten,
or repeated, to see those gentlemen."*
Even when the Bryans were at school in Prince Edward
County or Halifax County, they were frequently at
Roanoke on Saturdays or holidays ; and the Rev. Wm. S.
Lacy, in his Early Recollections of John Randolph, has
much to say about Randolph's visits to Ararat when John
Randolph Clay and the Bryans were pupils there imder
the care of the writer, who published his reminiscences
anonymously, and wrote as if he had been merely a pupil
at the school.
" It was Mr. Lacy's [the writer's] custom to hear his boys re-
cite their Latin and Greek grammar lessons before breakfast,"
the author of these recollections informs us, "and I have known
Mr. Randolph, more than once, to come from Bizarre, and
enter the schoolhouse by sun-up. At 9 o'clock, the school
"^as formally opened, when all the boys read verses about in the
Bible, until the chapter or portion was finished. Mr. Ran-
dolph always seemed highly pleased with this exercise, read
his verse in turn, and, with Mr. Lacy, would sometimes ask
questions. On one occasion, while reading one of the books of
the Pentateuch, he stopped a lad with the question: *Tom
Miller, can you tell me who was Moses' father?' 'Jethro,
Sir,' was the prompt answer. *Why, you little dog, Jethro
was his father-in-law.* Then, putting the question to four
or five others by name, not one of whom could answer, he
berated them soundly for their carelessness and inattention in
reading, saying: *When you were reading last week, William
Cook read the verse containing the name of Moses' father,
and have you all forgotten it already V Just then a young man
caught the name, and, unable to repeat the verse of the Bible,
repeated a part of a line from Milton —
*'*The potent rod of Amram's son, &c.'!
'Ah,' said Mr. Randolph, *that is the way you learn your Bible
— get it out of other books — ^what little you know of it' — and,
468 John Randolph of Roanoke
with an exceedingly solemn manner and tone, added, 'And so it
is with us all, and a terrible proof of our deep depravity it is,
that we can relish and remember anything better than THE
BOOK.' The very utterance, simple as it was, filled every one
with awe, and made him feel guilty, whilst at the same time it
imparted a reverence for the Bible which was never felt before,
and which from one mind, at least, never will be effaced. Mr.
Randolph was so pleased, however, with the young man who
quoted from his favorite author, that in a short time, as soon
perhaps as he could get it from Richmond, he presented him
with a beautiful copy of Milton's Paradise Lost, with a suitable
inscription in his own elegant handwriting.
''Another of the customs in the school at Ararat was to re-
view every Friday forenoon the studies of the preceding days,
and spend the afternoon in spelling, in which the whole school
took part, in reading select passages from the Bible, the
Spectator, Shakespeare or Milton, and in declamation. The
first exercise, spelling, afforded great amusement occasionally.
Mr. Randolph would always take the foot, and usually got to
the head pretty soon, when he would leave the circle and take
his seat. On one or two occasions, however, he was kept at the
foot until the exercise was closed, much to the gratification of
some of the smaller lads who had been stimulated to prepare
the two columns of the Dictionary (Walker's) with perfect ac-
curacy.
"In reading too, he would take his turn, and, after a trial
of a given selection had been made by two or three boys, he
would take the book and show them how it ought to be read.
Mr. Randolph was wonderfully gifted by nature with an ear
that could detect the slightest shades of tone, with a voice that
was music itself, and with a taste that was as faultless as I can
conceive. The modulations and intonations of his voice, the
pause, the accent, emphasis, were altogether wonderful. I
have felt it myself, and have seen other boys who, when he was
reading, actually seemed to doubt if it was the same piece
they had read but a few minutes before. Indeed, his reading
seemed to shed a flood of light over the passage, and give to it
a meaning which had never occurred to you before. I love
music, and love it dearly — far too much for my good I some-
Randolph as a Man 469
times fear; but, if the choice were given me to attend the best
arranged musical festival this country could get up, or to hear
Mr. Randolph read an hour from the Bible and Shakespeare,
it would not take a second to decide. As to declamation, he
never seemed to take much interest in it; holding to the belief
that a man or boy, if he had anything to say, could say it. He
used to quote to Mr Lacy on this subject a couplet from
Hudibras:
***A11 a rhetorician's rules
Teach him but to name his tools.'
And nothing but his profound reverence for old customs,
Antiquity, as I have often thought, could induce him to tolerate
the practice of declamation in schools. I never knew him, in a
single instance, to show how this ought to be done. Once,
when a little fellow, intending to place his hand on his heart,
put it too low down, Mr. Randolph gave a hearty laugh, suiting
a remark to the gesture.
"During recess or playtime, as we used to call it, Mr. Ran-
dolph would sometimes take part in the sport of the boys, and
engage in them with the greatest interest. The games, then
most common, were bandy, chumney, cat and marbles, with all
its variations of long taw, short taw, and knucks. I know
Congressmen, now-a-days, who would think it beneath their
dignity to play marbles, though some of them are men, 'whose
fathers* Mr. Randolph 'would have disdained to set with the
dogs of his flocks.' But I have played marbles with him and
Judge Tucker many a time, and have had my knucks stung
badly, too, by both of them.
''Usually he was very cheerful and communicative, and at
dinner told many interesting anecdotes of George Mason,
Edmund Pendleton, Patrick Henry, Nathaniel Macon, John
Marshall and other celebrities; or would talk about his visit to
England, describing the pafks and dwellings of such and such
noblemen with a particularity of detail that always deepened
the interest, especially when he came to the stud of horses or
the kennel of fox-hounds; his visit to Oxford with its city of
colleges, his dining with one Professor, taking breakfast with
another, and telling all about what was on the table; how the
470 John Randolph of Roanoke
servants dressed, the different kinds of gowns and caps of the
masters and students in the different colleges; his piirchasing
his famous horse, Gascoigne, from a nobleman of the same
name, for one hundred English guineas, when he was only a
'yearling last grass.' On another day, he would tell the boys
at the table — ^for in good old times we always sat an hour at
table, whether we had finished eating or not — of some wonder-
ful feat of his own, in walking so many miles when but seven-
teen years of age; or, in later years, how many partridges he
had bagged in such a hunt, beating Blake Woodson, a famous
shot, and old Chamer, his brother, beating Mr. Eggleston, and
old William Randolph, John Miller, Theodore Dudley, both
the Trents; and, becoming animated, he would say: *Yes
boys, and I beat black David Copeland all hollow — ^beat
him blacker than he is — Skilled two birds to his one.* Those
were glorious times to us boys.""
Once, Randolph, in a letter to John Randolph Bryan,
mentioned Tom Bryan, and added: "God bless the
rogue " ^ ; and in a letter to his friend, Thomas Spalding, of
Georgia, he referred to Tom Bryan as * * my young friend,
Tom," and said: "I love the rogue as well for his own
sake as his father's. "^
While they were with him, true to his highly practical
instincts, he exercised as close a supervision over them as
if he had been their mother. In a letter to Clay and the
two Bryans, when they were at Mr. Kilpatrick's school in
Halifax Coimty , he addressed them as * * my dear children, "
and told them that he had driven to Roanoke on the
previous Simday in the hope of seeing them before they
went off to school, but that **the birds were flown;" and
then, in his desire to see the lads, he concluded : ** You will
return with Johnny, and I trust with clean faces, hands,
teeth and clothes ; if any are to be dirty, let it be the last. " ^
' Union Seminary Magazine (1893-4), v. 5, l-ia
' Roanoke, Apr. 7, 1830, Bryan MSS.
* Ibid., Apr. 9, 1829, N. Y. Hist. Soc
* Nov. 5, 1818, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 47^
Nor did he ever lose an opportunity to impart knowl-
edge to his young friends. In another letter, of later date,
to John Randolph Bryan, "from Babel, " he tells him that
David Walker, a member of Congress from Kentucky,
had died that morning of ossification of the great aorta.
("The largest artery in the system — ossis and fieri — i. e.
becoming bone")» he explains. ' And then he enjoins the
boy to take care of his Virgil, and tells him that Clay who
was at some other school, was in Horace.
The pleasure that it must have given Randolph to see
two persons whom he loved so much as his niece and John
Randolph Bryan intermarried, we can readily imagine.
Affectionate, too, in the highest degree, were the rela-
tions sustained by Randolph for many years to Theodore
Dudley, who resided with him at Bizarre from 1800 imtil
1810. and afterwards at Roanoke until 1820. * Indeed, for
the greater pan of this period, he called Theodore his son,
and was a father to him in every respect ; maintaining and
educating him at his expense, first, at school in Virginia,
and, afterwards, at the medical college in Philadelphia;
and applying himself assiduously in every regard to the
task of fashioning him into a worthy and accomplished
man. Of the letters of Chesterfield, Dr. Samuel Johnson
said that, with the immorality taken out, they should be
put in the hands of every young man. In the sage, scin-
tillating letters, written by Randolph to Theodore, there
is no immorality to be excised. No one can read them,
written as they were without the slightest thought of
publication, without feeling that Randolph was not only
a brilliant man, but, at bottom, a thoroughly wise and
good one. Not many men with such tastes and occupa-
tions as his would have taken the trouble, day after day,
to drill a mere cousin, such as Theodore was, into the
' Mar. I, 1820, Bryan MSB.
* Deposition of Dr. Dudley Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., ClVs
Office, Petersburg, Va.
472 John Randolph of Roanoke
correct knowledge of orthography and syntax. After
pointing out, in one letter, various errors which the boy
had committed in a letter to him, he stuns up :
**' Number of lines in your letter, nine,
.... errors .... foiu*;*
and following up this damning tabulation, he adds:
** Surely you cannot have read over once what you wrote;
moreover, the hand is a very bad one ; many words blotted ;
and every part of it betrays negligence and a carelessness
of excelling — a most deplorable symptom in a yoimg
man.*' (a) This time he relied upon mere pedagogic
austerity. In the next letter to Theodore, he reminds
him of the copy of the letters written by the Earl of
Chatham to his nephew, which Randolph had sent to the
boy, and says: **Our situation, and that of its writer and
his nephew, are not dissimilar. Let us then profit by
their example; whilst I endeavor to avail myself of the
wisdom and experience of the one, do you also strive to
imitate the amiable docility of the other, and so may God
bless you, my dear boy.''* In another letter, written
several years later, Randolph brings even his wit to bear
upon the pride of the boy. After calling Theodore's
attention to numerous errors in a paper which he had
translated from English into Latin, such as the- use of
**equos" for **aequos" and the like, Randolph exclaims:
*' Can you believe, too, that you have made an English word
of arain? (to satisfy you I enclose the original) thus ; a ram. A
ram, too, of all the animals in the world, is, it seems, feminine;
*pressamq. aram*, says Ovid; but he, perchance, did not
understand Latin/ '^
These are but random specimens of the sedulous over-
sight that Randolph gave to the early education of Theo-
« Georgetown, Jan. 31, 1806, Letters to a Y, R., 10,
» Georgetown, Feb. 2, 1806, /rf., 11. * Dec. 30, 1808, Id,, 59.
Randolph as a Man 473
dore. It did not go unrewarded, for enough sentences
penned by the latter have survived to prove that he be-
came the master of a correct and pointed diction. And
this result represented the triumph not more of educa-
tional proficiency and discipline than of loving-kindness
on the part of his real master.
When Theodore replied to Randolph's letter in regard
to the translation in terms that plainly revealed his mor-
tification, Randolph replied in turn :
"You, my son, I trust will acquit me of any unnecessary or
wanton injury to your feelings, which I would forbear to wound
as if they were my own. It is only to heal that I would probe.
I confidently expect, therefore, by the next post a proof of the
good effect of yoiu* own judicious reflections upon the dis-
agreeable subject of my last. Your own good sense, my dear
boy, if you give it fair play, backed by industry ^ will insure you a
competent degree of proficiency in whatsoever pursuit you
may engage."*
In a subsequent letter, written from the Library of
Congress, Randolph is quick to inform Theodore that
another translation of his bore scarcely any resemblance
to its predecessor; being, with a single exception, literally
correct, which proved, he said, that, when the boy com-
mitted gross errors, it was not from a want of ability to
avoid them, and, indeed, impressed him with the belief
that, when he chose, he could excel. ^
Under Randolph's tuition, Theodore not only became
a good scholar, but a fine shot. In one of his letters to
him., when he was in Philadelphia, Randolph expressed the
hope that he would learn to fence and to dance also ; and
told him that he was very anxious that he should speak
French and read Italian, Spanish, and German. **As
many languages as a man knows, so many times is he a
' Georgetown, Jan. 13, 1809, Id,, 59.
•Jan. 17, 1809, Id., 61.
474 John Randolph of Roanoke
man," he quoted.' He was even willing that Theodore
should play upon the clarionet. '
It is not enough to say that Randolph met cheerfully all
the expenses of every kind connected with the mainte-
nance and education of Theodore, both in Virginia and at
Philadelphia ; for he repeatedly and eagerly urged him not
to shtrn any expense that was necessary for his comfort
or improvement. For instance, he wrote on one occasion :
"Do not fail to supply yotirself with a good collection of
medical books. Spare not on account of expense. To these
by next winter you can add siu-gical instruments, electrical ma-
chine, etc. I should be vexed if you suffered false economy to
interfere in a case like this. Let your dress also, without being
foolishly expensive, be that of a gentleman. I need not tell
you, who lived at Bizarre, to be neat. If yoiu* teeth require it,
have them cleaned and plugged by a dentist. It is an opera-
tion that I think ought to be performed (cleaning) once or
twice a year." ^
When Theodore grew older, Randolph made more and
more of a companion of him, and took him more and more
into his confidence. In 1 8 13, he wrote to him:
** You cannot oblige me so much as by thinking yourself to
stand to me in the relation of a favored son, and by acting as
master in my house and on my estate on every occasion where
your own pleasure, or a regard to my interest may prompt you
so to do. When you were young, and I was of opinion that it
might be injurious to your future character or fortunes to
encourage such views, I sedulously repressed them. Your
character is now formed; consider yourself then as not less
entitled to command here than if you were the child of my loins,
as you are the son of my affections.**^
« Roanoke, Nov. 15, 1807, Id., 77.
•JWa., Dec. 18, 1810, Id., 81.
i/Wrf., Nov. 15, 1807, Id., 77.
4 Sept., 1813, W., 142.
Randolph as a Man 475
In another letter, written during the same year, Ran-
dolph said :
"Feeling towards you as a father, I natiu^ally expect you to
act towards me as a son. As to the word gratitude, let it be
expunged from our vocabulary. I must not, however, be
debarred the pleasure of expressing sometimes my sense of the
aid and comfort which I derive from you, at the expense, I
know, of yoiu* interest, and, in many instances, I fear, of yoiu*
feelings. Do not misunderstand me; I mean that such a life
as you must lead at Roanoke is unsuited to your character
and disposition, and, therefore, I am anxious that you should
remove to this [Richmond] or some other town."'
In a letter written a few days before from Richmond,
Randolph was so impatient to see Dr. Dudley again that
he inquired : ' * Cannot you meet me here on the road ? —
say Farmville, or Amelia. You know not how much you
are prized by those who know you only as an acquaintance.
Can you wonder then, my dear Theodore, at the value
which I, who know you aufond, set upon you?*** In the
succeeding year, he writes to Theodore that the latter's
epistles bear strong symptoms of hypochondriasis.
'* You, my dear Theodore,** he further said, *'are the chief
stay and comfort of my life, and it grieves me to think that you
should be buried in the wilds of Roanoke; especially when I see
so many dolts here succeeding in the profession, of which you
have made yourself master. I think I must insist on your
removal. I know and admire the motive that keeps you where
you are, and it serves but to rivet my esteem of you.'*^
On one occasion, he wrote to Theodore three times in
one day, and, on another, four times in 12 or ^8 hours.
Nor would he have been surfeited, if Theodore had written
to him twice as often. In one letter, he tells Theodore
' Richm., Dec. 30, 1813, Id., 146.
'Ibid., Nov. 25, 1813, Id., 146.
^Ibid., Mar. 7, 1814, Id., 154.
476 John Randolph of Roanoke
that his letters are ** scanty," and **look like the forced
production of an imgenial climate."" Some four years
later, he asked Theodore to write him **long, garrulous
letters."^ In a subsequent letter, he tells him that he
(Theodore) is not the only correspondent who has alleged,
as a reason for not replying to his letters, that he expected
to hear from him. ^ A year or so later, he prized a letter
from Theodore so highly that he wrote to him at a time,
when the defamation of which he had been the subject
during the War of 1812 had not entirely died out:
** Your exploits d la chasse have been made known to all the
courts of Europe, at least to their Ministers, so far as the great
and small powers are represented here; for the whole corps
diplomatique were present yesterday when I read the extract
of your letter to one of that body at the hazard of being con-
sidered as one carrying on a treasonable correspondence with
England/*^
In truth, there are no limits to be set to the parental
affection with which Randolph cherished his yotmg
cousin's welfare. In one letter, he even tells him that, if
he lacks socks, to look into the upper drawer of his desk
and to take his.^ Rimning through all of his letters to
Theodore, is his intense desire that the intercourse be-
tween them should be the frank, imreserved intercourse
of a loving father and a loving son.
**I was aware that your finances must have been straight-
ened," he said to him on one occasion when the latter was a
medical student at Philadelphia, "and therefore I wished to
know how they stood that I might make the speediest and most
eflficient provision on that head. This you say is 'a delicate
» Bizarre, Nov. 16, 18 10, Id,, 75.
■ Dec. 24, 1814, Id., 167.
1 Dec. 27, 1814, Id.f 169.
< Babel, Jan. 14, 1817, Id,, 182.
• Dec. 4, 1808, /d., 54.
Randolph as a Man 477
subject*; true it is so, in general, but not between you and
myself, my dear son. Take care of your heart ; pity is akin to
love; grief prepares the affections for the sway of that seducing
tyrant. The ladies of Philadelphia are fair and alluring, and
your time of life is most propitious to their power over your
heart. In the language of yotu* profession, there is in every
yotmg man of a just and honorable way of thinking, of refined
and elevated notions, a strong predisposition to this universal
disease, which, like some others, all of us must have once in oiu*
lives. If the case be desperate, make me your confidant, if you
can: I will endeavotu* to prove myself not unworthy of the
trust. But I protest against extorted confidence and forced
prayers. I, too, have been young, and know how to make
allowance, I trust, for the noblest infirmity of our nature ; which
none but the young, or those who have not forgotten the feel-
ings of their youth, can duly estimate."*
AH the best letters written by Randolph should be
blended with the Letters to a Young Relative and published
with proper editorial notes. We know few books of the
sort that would be better entitled to be considered a classic.
Rarely have the precepts of universal wisdom and sound
morality been enforced in sweeter or more winning accents
than in The Letters to a Young Relative. Take this little
ethical discourse for example :
*'When I asked whether you have received the bank notes
I sent you, I did not mean to inquire how you had laid them out.
Don't you see the difference ? From yotu* not mentioning that
they had come to hand (a careless omission; you should break
yourself of this habit), and your cousin informing me that she
had not received two packets sent by the same mail, I con-
cluded that the notes were probably lost or embezzled. Hence
my inquiry after them. No, my son ; whatever cash I send you
(unless for some special purpose) is yours : you will spend it as
you please, and I have nothing to say to it. That you will not
employ it in a manner that you ought to be ashamed of, I have
» Roanoke, Oct. 6, 1811, Id., 107.
478 John Randolph of Roanoke
the fullest confidence. To pry into such affairs would not only
betray a want of that confidence, and even a suspicion dis-
creditable to us both, but infringe upon yotir rights and
independence. For, although you are not of an age to be your
own master and independent in all your actions, yet you are
possessed of rights which it would be tyranny and injustice to
withhold or invade. Indeed, this independence, which is so
much vaimted, and which young people think consists in doing
what they please, when they grow up to man's estate (with as
much justice as the poor negro thinks liberty consists in being
supported in idleness by other people's labour) — ^this in-
dependence is but a name. Place us where you will; along
with our rights there must co-exist correlative duties, and the
more exalted the station, the more arduous are these last.
Indeed, as the duty is precisely correspondent to the power, it
follows that the richer, the wiser, the more powerful a man is,
the greater is the obligation upon him to employ his gifts in
lessening the sum of human misery; and this employment
constitutes happiness, which the weak and wicked vainly
imagine to consist in wealth, finery, or senstial gratification.
Who so miserable as the bad Emperor of Rome? Who more
happy than Trajan and Antoninus? Look at the fretful,
peevish, rich man, whose senses are as much jaded by attempt-
ing to embrace too much gratification as the limbs of the poor
post-horse are by incessant labor. (See the Gentlemen and
Basket-makers, and, indeed, the whole of Sandford and
Merlon.)
**Do not, however, undervalue, on that account, the character
of the real gentleman, which is the most respectable amongst
men. It consists not of plate, and equipage, and rich living,
any more than in the disease which that mode of life engenders ;
but in truth, courtesy, bravery, generosity, and learning, which
last, although not essential to it, yet does very much to adorn
and illustrate the character of the true gentleman. Tommy
Merton's gentlemen were no gentlemen, except in the accepta-
tion of innkeepers (and the great vulgar, as well as the small),
with whom he, who rides in a coach and six, is three times as
great a gentleman as he who drives a post-chaise and pair. Lay
down this as a principle, that Truth is to the other virtues
Randolph as a Man 479
what vital air is to the human system. They camiot exist
at all without it; and, as the body may live under many
diseases, if supplied with pure air for its consumption, so may
the character survive many defects, where there is a rigid
attachment to Truth. All equivocation and subterfuge belong
to falsehood, which consists, not in using /a/5e words only, but
in conveying false impressions, no matter how; "and, if a person
deceive himself, and I, by my silence, suffer him to remain
in that error, I am implicated in the deception, unless he be one
who has no right to rely upon me for information, and, in that
case, 'tis plain, I could not be instrumental in deceiving him."'
Or could anything be smoother than the transition in
the following letter from copybook instruction to golden
truths of world-wide application :
"Take my advice, my son, and do not attempt a running
hand yet. The way to acquire a good running hand, is to
begin with a fair, large, clean-^ut, and distinct character.
Children always learn to stand alone, and to walk step by step,
before they run. There is another excellent rule, which, if
you now adhere to it, will be of great service to you through
life: 'Make haste slowly.* Hurry always occasions blunders
and delay. When, therefore, you make any mistake, or blot,
write all over again, fairly. The labor of doing this will make
you careful and correct; and, when the habit is formed, the
trouble is over. Habit is truly called 'second nature.* To
form good habits is almost as easy as to fall into bad. What
is the difference between an industrious, sober man and an idle
drunken one, but their respective habits? *Tis just as easy
for Mr. Harrison to be temperate and active, as 'tis for poor
Knowles to be the reverse; with this great difference, that,
exclusively of the effects of their respective courses of life on
their respectability and fortunes, the exercises of the one are
followed by health, pleasure, and peace of mind, whilst those
of the other engender disease, pain, and discontent; to say
nothing of poverty in its most hideous shape, want, squalid
misery, and the contempt of the world, contrasted with
' Georgetown, Feb. 15, 1806, M, 14.
48o John Randolph of Roanoke
affluent plenty, a smiling family, and the esteem of all good
men. Perhaps, you cannot believe that there exists a being
who would hesitate which of these two lots to choose. Alas!
my son, vice puts on such alltiring shapes, indolence is so seduc-
ing, that (like the flies in iEsop) we revel whilst the sun shines,
and, for a few hours' temporary pleasure, pay the price of
perishing miserably in the winter of our old age. The in-
dustrious ants are wiser. By a little forbearance at the
moment, by setting a just value on the future, and disregarding
present temptation, they secure an honourable and comfort-
able asyltmi. All nature, my son, is a volume, speaking com-
fort and offering instruction to the good and wise. But *the
fool saith in his heart, * 'There is no God" ' ; he shuts his eyes to
the great book of Nature that lies open before him. Your fate,
my dear Theodorick, is in your own hands. Like Hercules,
every young man has his choice between Pleasure, falsely so
called, and Infamy, or laborious Virtue and a fair fame. In
old age, indeed, long before, we begin to fed the folly or wis-
dom of our selection. I confidently trust that you, my son,
will choose wisely. In seven years from this time, you will
repent, or rejoice, at the disposition which you make of the
present hour.""
It came easy to Randolph to inculcate habits of deliber-
ation because, contrary to the false notions, which are so
often entertained of his character, he was never, John
Randolph Bryan tells us, in a hurry; though the soul of
energy both mentally and physically. Another letter of
exhortation is this :
* * Remember that labour is necessary to excellence. This is an
eternal truth, although vanity cannot be brought to believe, or
indolence to heed, it. I am deeply interested in seeing you
turn out a respectable man, in every point of view; and, as far
as I could, have endeavoured to furnish you with the means of
acquiring knowledge and correct principles, and manners, at
the same time. Self-conceit, and indifference are unfriendly, in
an equal degree, to the attainment of knowledge, or the form-
» Georgetown, March i, 1806, Id., 17.
Randolph as a Man 481
ing of an amiable character. The first is more offensive, but
does not more completely mar all excellence than the last; and
it is truly deplorable that both flotirish in Virginia, as if it were
their native soil. A petulant arrogance, or supine, listless
indifference, marks the character of too many of our young
men. They early asstmie airs of manhood; and these pre-
mature men remain children for the rest of their lives. Upon
the credit of a smattering of Latin, drinking grog, and chewing
tobacco, these striplings set up for legislators and statesmen;
and seem to deem it derogatory from their manhood to treat
age and experience with any degree of deference. They are
loud, boisterous, over-bearing, and dictatorial: profane in
speech, low and obscene in their pleasures. In the tavern, the
stable, or the gaming-house, they are at home; but, placed
in the society of real gentlemen and men of letters, they are
awkward and uneasy; in all situations, they are contemptible.
"The vanity of excelling in pursuits, where excellence does
not imply merit, has been the ruin of many a young man. I
should, therefore, be under apprehensions for a young fellow,
who danced uncommonly well, and expect more hereafter from
his heels than from his head. Alexander, I think, was re-
proached with singing well, and very justly. He must have
misapplied the time which he devoted to the acquisition of so
great a proficiency in that art. I once knew a young fellow
who was remarkably handsome; he was highly skilled in danc-
ing and fencing, an exceedingly good skater, and one of the most
dexterous billiard-players and marksmen that I ever saw. He
sang a good song, and was the envy of every foolish fellow, and
the darling of every silly girl, who knew him. He was, never-
theless, one of the most ignorant and conceited puppies whom
I ever beheld. Yet, it is highly probable, that, if he had not
been enamoured of the rare qualities which I have enumerated,
he might have made a valuable and estimable man. But he
was too entirely gratified with his superficial and worthless
accomplishments to bestow a proper cultivation on his mind." '
'*A liar is always a coward," is another homily that
Randolph read to Theodore in connection with a long
» Georgetown, Jan. 8, 1807, Id,, 25.
VOL. II. — 31
482 John Randolph of Roanoke
pointed discourse on the meanness, misery, and dishonor be-
gotten by debt. ' One more homily, and we will cease to
consider Randolph in the light of a gnomic philosopher :
** One of the best and wisest men I ever knew has often said
to me that a decayed family could never recover its loss of rank
in the world, until the members of it left oflE talking and
dwelling upon its former opulence. This remark, founded in a
long and close observation of mankind, I have seen verified, in
numerous instances, in my own connexions; who, to use the
words of my oracle, 'will never thrive, until they can become
**poor folks.*" He added, 'They make some struggles, and,
with apparent success, to recover lost ground; they may, and
sometimes do, get half way up again; but they are sure to fall
back, unless, reconciling themselves to circumstances, they
become in form, as well as in fact, poor folks.'
•The blind pursuit of wealth, for the sake of hoarding, is
a species of insanity. There are spirits, and not the least
worthy, who, content with an humble mediocrity, leave the
field of wealth and ambition open to more active, perhaps more
guilty, competitors. Nothing can be more respectable than
the independence that grows out of self-denial. The man who,
by abridging his wants, can find time to devote to the culti-
vation of his mind, or the aid of his fellow-creatures, is a being
far above the plodding sons of industry and gain. His is a
spirit of the noblest order. But what shall we say to the
drone, whom society is eager to 'shake from her encimibered
lap' ?; who lounges from place to place, and spends more time
in 'Adonizing' his person, even in a morning, than would serve
to earn his breakfast? who is curious in his living, a con-
noisseur in wines, fastidious in his cookery; but who never
knew the Itixury of earning a single meal? Such a creatiu^,
'sponging' from house to house, and always on the borrow, may
yet be found in Virginia. One more generation will, I trust,
put an end to them; and their posterity, if they have any,
must work or steal, directly.
"Men are like nations. One founds a family, the other an
empire — ^both destined, sooner or later, to decay. This is the
* Bizarre, Oct. 6, 1807, LeUers toaY, R., 39.
Randolph as a Man 483
way in which ability manifests itself. They who belong to a
higher order, like Newton, and Milton, and Shakespeare, leave
an imperishable name. I have no quarrel with such as are
content with their original obscurity, vegetate on from father
to son; 'whose ignoble blood has crept through clodpoles
ever since the flood' ; but I cannot respect them. He who con-
tentedly eats the bread of idleness and dependence is beneath
contempt. I know not why I have run out at this rate. Per-
haps, it arises from a passage in your letter. I cannot but
think you are greatly deceived. I do not believe the world to
be so little clear-sighted.
** What the 'covert insinuations' against you, on your arrival
at Richmond, were, I am at a loss to divine. I never heard
the slightest disparagement of your moral character; and I
know nobody less obnoxious to such imputations.""
In the preface to The Letters to a Young Relative, Dr.
Dudley tells us that his sentiment of filial devotion to
Randolph for many years constituted a large portion of
his moral existence. Alas ! that such a relationship shotdd
have become but a part of the mere lachrymce rerum. How
the blame for this fact should be apportioned between
the two, we, at least, shall not undertake to say ; for what
judge can ever sum up all that is to be said on each side of
a family estrangement of this kind ? Even before Aug. ,
181 8, there are hints in Randolph's letters to Dr. Dudley
that the latter was of a moody disposition ; but it is a letter,
written to Dr. Dudley in August, 1818, that bares to our
eye for the first time the rift which this disposition, con-
spiring with the excesses of temper, produced in Randolph
by the spell of mental derangement through which he had
recently passed, had made. Randolph's letter was in
these words :
**I consider myself under obligations to you that I can
never repay. I have considered you as a blessing sent to me
by Providence, in my old age, to repay the desertion of my
» Washington, Dec. 30, 1821, Id., 232.
4^4 John Randolph of Roanoke
other friends and nearer cx)nnexions. It is in your power (if
you please) to repay me all the debt of gratitude that you
insist upon being due to me; although I consider myself, in a
pecuniary point of view, largely a gainer by our connexion.
But, if you are unwilling to do so, I must be content to give up
my last stay upon earth ; for I shall, in that case, send the boys
to their parents. Without you, I cannot live here at all, and
will not. What it is that has occasioned the change in your
manner towards me, I am unable to discover. I have ascribed
it to the disease by which you are afflicted, and which aflEects
the mind and temper as well as the animal faculties. In your
principles I have as unbounded confidence as I have in those
of any man on earth. Your disinterestedness, integrity, and
truth, would extort my esteem and respect, even if I were
disposed to withhold them. I love you as my own son ; would
to God you were. I see, I think, into your heart ; mine is open
before you, if you will look into it. Nothing could ever
eradicate this affection, which surpasses that of any other per-
son (as I believe) on earth. Your parents have other children:
I have only you. But I see you wearing out your time, and
wasting away, in this desert, where you have no society such
as your time of life, habits and taste require. I have looked at
you often, engaged in contributing to my advantage and
comfort, with tears in my eyes, although I was selfish and
cruel in sacrificing you to my interest. I am going from
home: will you take care of my affairs until I return? — I ask
it as a favor. It is possible that we may not meet again; but,
if I get more seriously sick at the springs than I am now, I will
send for you, unless you will go with me to the White Sulphur
Springs. Wherever I am, my heart will love you as long as it
beats. From your boyhood, I have not been lavish of reproof
upon you. Recollect my past life.'*^
When this letter was published in The Letters to a Young
Relative, Dr. Dudley added to it this terrible footnote :
** This letter was written during a lucid interval of alienation
of mind; which, for the first time, amounted to positive
•Aug., 1818, Id,, 203.
Randolph as a Man 485
delirium. Fits of caprice and petulance, following days of
deepest gloom, had, for years previously, overshadowed his
mind; evincing the existence of some corroding care, for which
he neither sought, nor would receive, any sympathy.
** For many weeks, his conduct towards myself, who was
•the only inmate of his household, had been marked by con-
tumelious indignities, which it required almost heroic patience
to endure; even when aided by a warm and affectionate de-
votion, and an anxious wish to alleviate the agonies of such a
mind in ruins. All hope of attaining this end finally failed;
and, when he found that I would no longer remain with him,
the above letter was written; it is almost needless to say,'with
what effect. I remained with him two years longer.
"The truth and beauty of the eastern allegory, of the man,
endowed with two souls, was never more forcibly exemplified
than in his case. In his dark days, when the evil genius
predominated, the austere vindictiveness of his feelings to-
wards those that a distempered fancy depicted as enemies,
or as delinquent in truth or honour, was horribly severe and
remorseless.
** Under such circumstances of mental alienation, I sincerely
believe (if it may not appear irreverent) that, had our
blessed Savior, accompanied by his Holy Mother, conde-
scended to become again incarnate, revisited the earth, and
been domiciliated with him one week, he would have im-
agined the former a rogue, and the latter no better than she
should be.
**0n the contrary, when the benevolent genius had the
ascendant, no one ever knew better how to feel and express
the tenderest kindness, or to evince, in countenance and
manner, gentler benevolence of heart.*' ^ (a)
When Dr. Dudley left Roanoke in February, 1820,* it
was to enter upon the practice of medicine in Richmond.
Later on, hearing that he thought of leaving Virginia,
Randolph wrote to him :
» Id. (note).
• Deposition of Dr. Dudley, Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clk's
Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg, Va.
486 John Randolph of Roanoke
'*I hope you will not leave Virginia, and, above all» for a
climate the most noxiotis to your particular habit. My heart
gushes over towards you. To establish yourself in your pro-
fession, where you are, requires only a little time and patience.
You are stirrounded by respectable persons, to whom you are
known, and by whom you are respected, with whom you can
associate on terms of eqtiality and freedom. This is no light
advantage, not to be given up but upon the most cogent
considerations. The cloud that overhangs Richmond will pass
away. Meanwhile, consider me your banker, and, if your
pride revolt at the obligation, I will consent to reimbiu^ement
out of the first fruits of your practice; but it ought not so to
revolt because it will wound the already bruised."*
The last letter in The Letters to a Young Relative is dated
Feb. 1 1 , 1822. It was preceded six days before by another
in which Randolph, after telling Dr. Dudley that he had
never received a letter from him that had gratified him
more than the one which he acknowledged, said character-
istically: **Your medical advice is very thankfully re-
ceived and will be followed ... so far as my own
experience does not run counter to it. "'
In the Randolph will litigation. Dr. Dudley testified
that the first attack observed by him which clearly indi-
cated mental derangement on Randolph's part had
occurred during the stunmer of 1818; that, about 12
months before this time, Randolph had told him that he
was conscious that his intellect was disordered on the
subject of an early love affair, and that he knew that he
had alienated almost all of his nearest friends by his
unhappy temper; and that, during the first violent parox-
ysm of Randolph's insanity, which lasted nearly all of the
summer of 18 18, and afterwards returned, Randolph was
guilty of the wildest extravagance ; such as rising at mid-
night and imagining that his neighbors were conmiitting
'Washington, Dec. 14, 1820, Id., 227.
•Washington, Feb. 5, 1822, M, 250.
Randolph as a Man 487
trespasses on his land; cutting down line trees, etc. Dr.
Dudley also testified that the paternal interest of Ran-
dolph in his welfare continued until the spring of 1822,
when all intercourse between them ceased, and that, from
that time on, whenever an opportunity arose, he displayed
the deepest malignity of feeling toward him ; on one occa-
sion even writing him **a most insolent letter, " demanding
payment for certain articles which he had given him. In
his deposition, however, Dr. Dudley also stated that in
his opinion there had never been a time, after the attack
of 1 81 8, when Randolph had been capable of making a
valid will. He also bore witness to the complete change
in all his ordinary traits of character which Randolph
underwent when subject to a fit of mental disorder. '
Randolph's relations to Theodoric Tudor Randolph
were closely similar to his relations to Dr. Dudley, when
the latter was of the same age. Describing in a letter to
Nicholson the serious illness which befell Tudor when he
was a boy, he says : * * Before he was bled, he never closed
an eye, but lay patiently mute, taking without reluctance
everything that was offered him and baring his little arm
for the lancet. Never did I see more composed forti-
tude. "^ **My son is better," he tells Nicholson in his
next letter. ^
Until Tudor was 9 years old, he had never had any other
tutor than his uncle. ^ When he was approaching his
tenth year, Randolph informed Nicholson that the boy
was making good progress in Ccesar. ^ Tudor was after-
wards placed with Theodore Dudley at a school in Rich-
mond, which was conducted by a Dr. Haller; and subse-
quently he was also for a time under the tuition of Dr.
» Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., ClTc's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
» Bizarre, Mar. 17, 1805, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
i Petersburg, Apr. 6, 1805, Id,
< Bizarre, Aug. 27, 1804, Id.
• Bizarre, Aug. 27, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
488 John Randolph of Roanoke
John H. Rice, at the home of the latter in Prince Edward
County; but, throughout Tudor's brief life, Randolph had
such a free hand in the formation of his character and
intellect that he was in the habit of saying with no little
justice that Tudor was a creature entirely of his own
creation. Once in a letter to his friend Mr. Parish, of
Philadelphia, he said: ** Permit me to introduce to you
my nephew — ^let the father say my son — ^f or he has known
no other father and is the child of my heart and of my
adoption — Mr. Tudor Randolph. " "
His pet name for Tudor as a boy was "Buona. " The
boy soon gave proof of the extraordinary talents that
caused Randolph to say after his death that he was the
most gifted hiunan being that he had ever known. * When
he was at school in Richmond, his uncle described him in
these pointed terms in a letter to Nicholson :
**He promises to possess all his father's genius. He can
not have a better. All my solicitude is on the subject of his
character. I have no fears upon the subject of literary ac-
complishments. His acquirements in that way are made too
easily and with too much pleasure to himself not to be ample.
All my dread is that his temper may prove too soft — so as to
give to his inferiors in other respects an ascendant over him.
The boy is no coward — far from it; but he is meekness itself,
overflowing with the milk of human kindness. This would do
admirably for Robinson Crusoe's Island or the Golden Age, or
even for a Moravian Brotherhood, but it will not suit these
times. This, as Mr. Talleyrand has shrewdly remarked, is the
age of upstarts, and you must take your choice to crush them
or be crushed by them. I shall, therefore, make it my study
to put buckram into this fellow in due time — or (as our friend
Bryan would not unpoetically say) tip him with a touch of the
torch of Prometheus." 3
» Georgetown, June i8, 1812, Beverley D. Tucker MSS.
» J. C. Grinnan MSS.
»J. R. to Nicholson, Bizarre, Oct. 24, 1806, Nicholson MSS., Libr.
Cong.
Randolph as a Man 4^9
The letters contained in The Letters to a Young Relative,
are in some instances addressed to Tudor as well as Theo-
dore, and in the collection there are a number of references
to the former. On one occasion, Randolph asks Theo-
dore what could have induced Buona to spell ** watch"
"wacth. "" On another he conveys through Theodore
a reproof to Buona for writing **a tolerable long letter,"
instead of **a tolerably long letter. "^ In the same letter,
he says that, if Buona had been describing Richmond to
his mother or himself, he would never have introduced it
with: **I beg leave to wait upon you"; an awkward
exordium which even Mr. Expectation, of Norfolk, would
not approve. **I wish you were with me, my sons, to
enjoy the sport," Randolph says in conclusion. ''Yoiu*
skill, my dear Theodore, would make amends for my
cliunsiness, and dear Buona would hold Miniken, who now
runs away from imcle whenever she has an opportunity. " '
This was when Tudor was eleven years old. Later, in a
letter to Theodore, Randolph expressed the hope that even
Buona would soon come to beat him on the wing. * * Give
my love to him. I long to see his rosy cheeks, " the letter
adds. ^ Over and over again, evidence is brought to our
attention in Randolph's letters that Tudor, like Theodore,
was frequently the beneficiary of a degree of pecuniary
generosity on Randolph's part which we should hardly
expect anyone but a father to exhibit.
After Randolph moved from Bizarre to Roanoke, Tudor
and his brother St. George were frequently companions of
Randolph there. For instance, under date of July 17,
181 1, when Tudor was in his fifteenth year, the Diary
contains this entry: ** Tudor arrives in evening from
Bizarre with Fidget and Beauty." There is also this
' Bizarre, Jul. 24, 1806, Letters to a Y. R., 22,
'Ibid., Sept. II, 1806, Id., 23.
ilbid.
* Georgetown, Nov. 27, 1807, Letters toa Y. R., 42.
490 John Randolph of Roanoke
amusing reference to Tudor in the School-boy Reminis-
cences of John Randolph, by Wm. H. Elliott :
"Mr. Randolph wotdd sometimes unbend himself in small
talk with little boys, but not often. On one occasion, C. C,
[Carter Coupland] a distant relation of Mr. Randolph, ac-
companied Tudor and myself on a visit to Roanoke. At the
close of a long summer's day, after having hunted squirrels,
climbed trees, swam in the river, and played marbles to satiety,
we composed ourselves to rest, all in the same apartment — ^we
three boys on a pallet of liberal dimensions, spread upon the
floor, Mr. Randolph on a bed to himself, where, stretched out
at full length, and, covered by a single sheet, he looked like a
pair of oyster tongs. He had a book and a candle by him
reading. At length, he dropped the book, looked up at the
ceiling, and commenced thus: 'Boys! why may not the earth
be an animal?' Oiu* researches into natural history did not
enable us to advance any striking hypothesis on such a subject.
All continued perfectly silent. Mr. Randolph no doubt did
not expect any ingenious suggestion in support of his theory, but
asked the question merely for the purpose of introducing his
own fanciful strain of remarks. He resumed: 'Now the ocean
may be regarded as the heart or great receptacle of the
blood, the rivers are the veins and arteries, the rocks are the
bones.' Here C. C, being a sprightly youth, whispered in
my ear, 'There is not much marrow in them bones.' This
sally well-nigh cost me an irreverent chuckle. 'The trees
are the hair of this animal, and men and other vermin inhabit
these hairs. If we dig a hole in the earth, or wound it in any
way, we find that it has a tendency to heal up.' Tudor, who
was a corpulent youth, and overcome by the exercises of the
day, commenced snoring. Randolph's quick ear caught the
sound, he turned his head in our direction, his eyes flashed
indignation: 'Is that beef -headed fellow asleep already?'; but,
as he received no further response than a confirmatory snort
from the same quarter, he extinguished his candle with an
impatient gesture, wheeled himself over towards the wall, and
seemed to seek in sleep an oblivion of his disgust." '
« Bouldin, 79.
Randolph as a Man 49 1
Of Tudor, when he was a pupil at Dr. Rice's, we have
but few details, beyond the fact that Dr. Rice hoped to
make a clergyman of him^; warned him when he was
leaving Virginia for Harvard against contracting a dis-
gust for his native State, " and referred to him in a letter
to Judith, whom he had won over from the Episcopal to
the Presbyterian Church, as **our dear boy. "'
At Harvard, Tudor acquired a standing which spoke
well not only for his own natural genius, but for the
thoroughness of the education which a boy cotdd receive
in his day in Southside Virginia, despite the imfavorable
opinion which Henry Adams formed of its inhabitants.
** He was a lad of fine abilities," Josiah Quincy, Jr., declares,
"and sufficiently attentive to his studies to take rank among
the foremost in his dass. Unhappily, his health failed towards
the end of his college life, and he died in England before the
class graduated; but the corporation nevertheless gave him his
degree, and his name appears regularly in the triennial cata-
logue. My father had a general oversight of young Ran-
dolph and the charge of his money matters."*
In appearance, Edmund Quincy tells us that Tudor was
a tall, swarthy youth with a good deal in his looks that
seemed to justify his claim to a descent from Pocahontas
and Powhatan.
A still more flattering accoimt of the youth was given
by John G. Palfrey, the New England historian, in a letter
to Jared Sparks :
** Randolph, a nephew and heir of the celebrated John
Randolph, has just come here from Virginia, and is studying
with Mr. Everett. He did mean to enter our class, but Everett
has advised him, and I believe he now intends, to enter junior
» Memoir of Rev, Jno. H, Rice, by Wm. Maxwell, 77.
*7i.,94.
* Memoir 0} Dr, Jno, Holt Rice, by Maxwell, 1 18.
^ Life of Quincy, 267.
492 John Randolph of Roanoke
next commencement. He is a very smart fellow, very studious
and has read almost all the Greek and Latin that was ever
written. He has been here only a week, and, in that time, has
been over Minora and the Testament, which he never studied
before. He has been over none of the freshman or sophomore
studies — Livy and Horace — except part of the mathematics,
some of the authors from which there are selections in Excerpta
and Graeca Majora, and four books of Euclid, He intends
to review all the studies required to enter, and has apportioned
his time so as to allow only 8 days to Locke and Logic ! I hope,
however, he will be discouraged and enter our class; for he
would be an honor to it."'
A later letter — one from Charles Folsom to Jared Sparks
— ^told Sparks that a third person had seen Tudor in Lon-
don very much emaciated, pale, and enfeebled in body and
voice ; that he had just returned from Cheltenham Springs
from which he thought that he had derived some benefit,
but that he was manifestly past recovery, and connected
with the world by hope only. * After the death of Tudor,
a third friend of Sparks wrote of him to Sparks in these
measured but generous terms :
**You have heard, doubtless, of Randolph's death. He
was never very friendly to me, but the grave should conceal
the feelings as soon as it buries the virtues of our associates
in oblivion. His character was very peculiar, but we have
every reason to believe that he would have been a great man."^
The judgment ot Tudor, formed by Sparks himself, is
hardly less favorable. '* Taken all in all, he was one of
the most promising, perhaps, the most promising, young
man who has been at Cambridge within my knowledge of
the institution. I was very warmly attached to him. "^
As usual, Randolph had formed a correct estimate of
' July 7, 1 812, Life, &c., of Jared Sparks, by Herbert B. Adams, v. i, 70.
•Oct. 20, 181 5, M, 71 (note).
3 Wm. H. Elliott, to Jared Sparks, Nov. 15, 1815, 7<i., 71 (note).
^ Id.j V. 2, 461.
Randolph as a Man 493
intellectual capacity. He did not often trouble himself
about the valuation placed upon his speeches by others,
but, after Tudor's death, he wrote to Judith :
" I have a request . . . to make of you. It is to furnish me,
after you shall have read them, with all the letters from me to
Tudor in your possession, and with one of his to you, of which
I am the subject. You gave it to me or sent it to me last year
(1814) and it contains this expression: 'Stirely, my uncle
"spake as never man spake." * '*^
In an earher letter to David Parish, Randolph said:
* ' I shall embark for England in the spring, and spend the
summer at Cheltenham, where is lodged in the bosom of
the earth the treasure of my heart. **'
Over the grave at Cheltenham, he caused a stone to be
placed with an inscription, stating that Tudor had fallen
a victim to the consequences of intense study, which had
obliged him to leave his college about 12 months before his
decease, and that, in testimony of his merit as a scholar,
the corporation of the University of Harvard had con-
ferred on him the degree of Bachelor of Arts, at their
annual commencement, held on August 30, 181 5; ignorant
that he was then removed beyond the sphere of htunan
censure or human applause. ^ (a)
Peculiarly tender were Randolph's relations to John
St. George Randolph, Tudor *s elder brother, who was bom
deaf and dumb, and died after many years of hopeless
insanity. If anyone doubts that Randolph was turtle-
dove as well as falcon, all that he has to do is to make him-
self familiar with the infinite love and compassion that
he heaped upon this unfortunate youth. At Bizarre, St.
George grew up immediately under the eye of his uncle,
and, after the latter had removed to Roanoke, he fre-
' Georgetown, Jan. 20, 1816, Grinnan MSS.
'Ibid., Feb. 3, 18 16.
aj.R.'s Diary.
494 John Randolph of Roanoke
quently passed to and fro between Bizarre and Roanoke.
Though too deaf to hear the whirr of a partridge's wings,
and too dtunb to utter a command to a pointer, he
achieved the highest ambition of a Southside Virginia boy
of his day; except that of making an eloquent speech,
namely, that of being a good shot on the wing. On one
occasion, he wrote to his uncle that he had killed 5 par-
tridges and a hare at 8 shots. ' Whole or maimed, it was
to that and better that every Southside lad of his age
aspired in the stubble field.
In his desire to give St. George the best education that
one in his condition was capable of receiving, Randolph
sent him abroad in 1805 to take a course of instruction,
first, at Braidwood's, at Harkney, near London, and then
at Sicard's, near Paris. **I am here that I may see the
last of my poor boy, " he wrote to St. George Tucker from
Baltimore. **He leaves me tomorrow for England."'
Everything that money cotdd do to promote the improve-
ment of the boy, while he was abroad, Randolph saw that
money did; and, throughout his entire correspondence
with Monroe, who, with his family, was, to some extent,
Randolph's proxy in the care of St. George, when the
latter was in England, there are expressions of the eagerest
solicitude about the boy's welfare. * * Poor dear tmf ortu-
nate boy " ^ ; * * My imhappy boy " ^ ; * * That dear, interest-
ing boy, "^ are some of the caressing terms that Randolph
employs about St. George in his letters to Monroe. To
Monroe and the members of his family Randolph's heart
overflowed, as it was wont to do in requital for any real
service to him, in words of the warmest acknowledgment,
for their kindness to his nephew. It would seem, however,
« Fannville, Jan. 8, 1813, Bryan MSB.
■ Dec. 17, 1805, Lucas MSB.
i Monroe Papers, v. 9, 1360, Libr. Cong.
s Mch. 26, 1808, Monroe Papers, v. 12, 1543, Libr. Cong,
Randolph as a Man 495
that St. George derived but little benefit from his schooling
abroad; for, in one of his letters to Dr. Dudley, after the
young man's return, Randolph says that of late St.
George's letters to him had been hardly inteUigible. * "I
fear he will lose the faculty of expressing his thoughts on
paper if no one takes the trouble to correct him," Ran-
dolph observed. **Alas! 'prayers are not morality,' nor
'kneeling religion, ' "* (a) Some of the poor boy's unin-
telligible letters to his uncle, all breathing a spirit of the
most devoted affection for him, have stu^ved. In one of
them, speaking of Randolph's servant, Jupiter, he says:
* ' I fear it would trouble you to tell you that Jupiter clothes
are worn out now but it will be mended well I hope."
However, when these jumbled words are read, a smile
does not light up the face so readily as it would do if St.
George had not already expressed in the same letter the
great pleasure afforded him by his tmcle's letters, and
declared: '*It delighted me very much, my dear uncle,
that you remember me as tenderly as if you were my
father."^ '*This county has none the gold rings. I
wish you to get one for me in Richmond, if you please, "
is another fumbling sentence which he wrote to his uncle ;
doubtless at a time when he thought that he was about to
be married. ^
Randolph, it seems, was desirous that the young man
should marry, (b) This fact comes out in a letter from
Judith to Randolph, written at a time when St. George's
affections were fixed upon a definite object — ^his cousin,
Jane Hackley, the daughter of his mother's sister Harriet,
the wife of Richard S. Hackley, who was for a time the
American Consul at San Lucar, Spain. ^ **You have
always encouraged the idea of St. George forming a matri-
monial connection at a proper age," she said.
« Dec. 18, 1812, Letters toa Y. R,, 131. • Id,
i Bizarre, Jan. 20, 18 13, Bryan MSS.
< Ibid,, Apr. 19, 1814, Bryan MSS. » Bryan MSS.
496 John Randolph of Roanoke
** While I ever believed that it was extremely improbable
that he would find a woman worthy of him, disposed to submit
to the inconveniences arising from his misfortune, to me it
would be the most desirable event I could witness; but my
most sanguine hopes have never aspired to so much happiness.
May Heaven in its mercy protect and bless my child! All I
can do to promote his interest and comfort shall be done while
I live, and I endeavor to fortify his mind with those genuine
principles of Christian piety which alone can teach him (in my
opinion) patience and forbearance. He is cheerful and con-
tented, I hope, although he has recently experienced a dis-
appointment in his wish to gain the affections of a very amiable,
exemplary girl, but one destitute of every personal charm
whatever — I mean Jane Hackley.***
So far as we are aware, only one letter from Randolph
to St. George is extant. It was written the year before
the boy was sent to England :
** I came back from Alexandria this morning quite dispirited
at parting from you,'* it said, **and have felt solitary and
deserted ever since. My room seems quite forlorn now you
have deserted it, and several times I have been on the point of
asking where you were when I recollected myself. Mr. Brent
sent you a note to come and dine with him today. He is
father of George Brent. The stage driver, of whom I inquired,
told me that he met the ctirricle near Mrs. Washington's, so
that you must have reached Colchester before dark. I wish
the bridge had been mended, and then you would have been
saved a cold time of it in the boat. How unlucky that we
could not get a great-coat for you ! God bless you my dearest
son. Write to your fond uncle who loves you inexpressibly. Two
months will soon pass away, and then your expedition to Lon-
don shall be deferred no longer. Again, my dear boy, adieu ! '*'
The Diary records the circumstances under which the
first knowledge of St. George's insanity was received by
'July 24, 1813, Bryan MSS.
• Washington, Dec. 25, 1804, Wm. Leigh, Jr., MSS.
Randolph as a Man 497
Randolph. When it reached him, he was still lingering
in Richmond, after having spent the winter of 1813-1814
there so delightfully. This is the entry: ** 1814, May 10.
Tuesd. Rec'd Judith's letter, annotmcing St. George's
insanity. Set out immediately for Mrs. Tabb's that
night — ^next day to Farmville. " About two weeks later,
Randolph took St. George to his own home at Roanoke
from Farmville, where Judith resided for a while after the
destruction of her home at Bizarre ; and, from this time on ,
there are frequent references to St. George in Randolph's
letters to his friends.
'*My eldest nephew, St. George," he wrote to Francis
Scott Key, **in consequence of an unsuccessful attachment to
Miss , the daughter of a worthy neighbor of his mother,
had become unsettled in his intellects, and, on my arrival at
Farmville, I found him a frantic maniac. I have brought him
up here and Dr. Dudley, a friend and treasure to me above all
price, assists me in the management of him. We have no
hopes of his restoration."^
In a letter to Key written eleven days later, Randolph
told Key that St. George had made several attempts to
marry, and that, brooding over the cause of his failure,
had reduced him to his present state. *
When this letter was written, St. George had been taken
back to Farmville, but had been again shifted from Farm-
ville to Roanoke, because, as Randolph intimated in his
letter, he had become incurably alienated from his mother.
The exact mental condition of St. George is clearly
stated by Randolph in a letter which he wrote the next
day to Dr. Brockenbrough.
**Poor St. George continues quite irrational," he said.
'*He is, however, very little mischievous, and governed pretty
easily. His memory of persons, things, words and events is
' Roanoke, June 3, 1814, Garland, v. 2, 39.
*Ibid., Jul. 14, 1814, Id,, 40.
VOL. n. — 32
498 John Randolph of Roanoke
not at all impaired, but he has no power of combination, and is
entirely incoherent." '
Later, St. George was confined in an insane asylum at
Philadelphia, and, afterwards, he was confined in one at
or near Baltimore. In 1817, Henry St. George Tucker
went to see him at Philadelphia, and, reporting what he
saw to Dr. Dudley, Randolph said: "He went with
Ryland to see St. George, and was surprised to find his
madness of so bad a type. He tears everything to tatters
that he lays his hands on. He recognized his uncle at
once but the moody expression of his cotmtenance indi-
cated in Harry 's opinion, incurable insanity. ** ' Nothing
can be more pathetic than the language in which Ran-
dolph spoke of St. George, after the latter had lost his
reason: "Poor St. George, ill-starred, unforttmate boy!"
he wrote to Theodore, — * * His destiny was sealed before his
birth or conception. Take care of yourself; you are my
last stay. "^ These words were written from Morrisania
in 1 8 14, after the sight of poor Tudor 's consumptive face
there, and the approaching extinction of all hopes of fur-
ther descent from his father had awakened in him the
feelings which afterwards caused him to exclaim in words,
partly borrowed from the famous speech of the Indian
Chief, Logan, that there remained not a drop of Logan's
blood, except St. George, "the most bereaved and pitiable
of the stepsons of nature."^ Even before Randolph
visited Morrisania, however, the ruin, in which his whole
family line was being involved, had become plain to him.
Writing to Key from Roanoke on July 31, 1814, he penned
these harrowing words :
''Affliction has assailed me in a new shape. My younger
nephew, whom you saw in Georgetown a few years ago, has
' Roanoke, Jul. 15, 1814, Id., 41.
» Georgetown, Feb. 23, 1817, Letters to a Y. R., 196.
i Morrisania, Oct. 23, 1814, Letters to a Y, R,, 163.
< Garland, v. i, 70.
Randolph as a Man 499
fallen, I fear, into a confirmed pxilmonary consumption. He
was the pride, the sole hope of our family. How shall I
annotmce to his wretched mother that the last stay of her
widowed life is falling? Give me some comfort, my good
friend, I beseech you. He is now travelling by slow journeys
home. What a scene awaits him there! His birthplace in
ashes; his mother worn to a skeleton with disease and grief; his
brother cut off from all that distinguishes man to his advantage
from the brute beast. I do assure you that my own reason has
staggered under this cruel blow. I know, or rather have a
confused conception of what I ought to do, and sometimes
strive, not altogether ineffectually I hope, to do it. But again
all is chaos and misery.'*'
Some of the letters written by Judith to Randolph when
St. George was at Roanoke in a demented condition have
been preserved, and they are indicative of both a strong
intellect and a lofty spirit. After St. George had been
absent from her for about a month, she wrote these affect-
ing words to Randolph :
" My dear Brother : As there seems little probability that
change of scene will produce any permanent benefit to my
unhappy child, I would wish to know whether you suppose it
could be any disadvantage to him to have him removed to
Bizarre, where, in a few weeks, I can have a very comfortable
room fitted up for myself. You say that you think the negroes
can restrain St. George sufficiently, and that he shows no dis-
position to injure persons or animals. If so, there is no reason
why you shotild suffer exclusively the melancholy sight which
it is my duty and my inclination to relieve you from. At this
place, he cannot be kept; the vicinity of the highroad; the
tavern opposite, which is now continually visited by strangers,
together with the excessive heat and sun in this house, would
destroy him. In his own little apartment at Bizarre, he could
be very comfortable; it is so well shaded. Oh! had we never
quitted that spot, desolate as it now is! my child would never
have lost his reason! A more guileless, innocent and happy
» Id,, v. 2, 43.
500 John Randolph of Roanoke
creature I believe never existed than he, iintil that fatal calam-
ity which sent us forth houseless."'
In response to this letter, St. George was a week or so
later taken to Farmville; but three days afterwards, for
some reason, he was taken back to Roanoke.* Subse-
quently, his condition improved for a time, because in one
of Randolph's briefer journals, under date of Nov. i8,
1816, it is stated that St. George had relapsed. About
two weeks later, after being bled, he was taken to the
asyltim at Philadelphia ; Randolph, who was in Richmond,
when he reached that City, noting in the journal just
mentioned, under date of Dec. 2, 1816, that he had slept
with the poor fellow the night before.
Among the letters from Judith to Randolph, in regard
to St. George, when he was at Roanoke, is one in which she
thanks him for giving her every week accurate intelligence
about her son. **May the mercy of Heaven be extended
to my beloved child," she concludes. ** Excuse me, my
dear brother, these idle and impertinent wanderings.
May God bless you. *'^ But the most noteworthy of all
the letters is one upon the back of which we can still trace
a diligent effort by Randolph to converse with his deaf
and dumb nephew. The words, scribbled by St. George,
are entirely irrational, and, so far as they are intelligible
at all, betray a delusion upon his part that Randolph was
about to be put in prison by the people of Cimiberland
County; which Randolph endeavored to dissipate by his
written replies. The strange conversation opens with
these words : '* I am glad to see you so much better these
two days, my dear nephew. I love you much. "^
St. George died at an advanced age, after being taken
under the roof of his committee, Wyatt Cardwell. at
» Farmville, June 28, 18 14, Bryan MSB.
« J. R.'s Diary.
i Farmville, Jime 14, 181 4, Bryan MSS.
4 Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 501
Charlotte Court House, and his estate, so far as made up
of what he received from the compromise in the Ran-
dolph wiU litigation, was distributed, in the proportion of
one-half, among his paternal, and, in the proportion of
one-half, among his maternal, kindred. A description of
him, as he was in 1856, a few years before his death, when
he was at large at Charlotte Coiut House, and a harmless
lunatic, has been recently given to us by Marion Harland
in her Autobiography, He was then a man of venerable
appearance, with a full white beard, but his figure, which
was above the medium height, was still "erect as a Vir-
ginia Pine.** He planted his feet straight forward, like
an Indian, as he walked, his hair was snow-white, his eye-
brows were black, his eyes were dark and piercing, and his
features were finely chiselled.' He had his own riding
horse, he read and apparently enjoyed Latin and French,
as well as English, books, and retained a distinct recollec-
tion of his famous uncle and of the politics of his day. * (a)
Indeed, Randolph seems to have felt a deep sympathy
in every respect with what he calls in one of his letters to
his niece **the freshness of unhackneyed youth. "^
Bouldin tells an interesting story of the kindly manner in
which he relieved the despondency of a sensible and meri-
torious young man, who had begtm the study of one of the
learned professions, by assuring him repeatedly that he
had nothing to fear ; that he had the requisite qualifications
for success in his chosen calling, and that all he had to do
was to persevere, as several men of his acquaintance that
he mentioned had done, who, without splendid abilities,
had, solely by their industry and persistency, won good
positions for themselves in life. ^
More definite is this beautiful tribute paid to Randolph
by the Rev. John T. Clark in the reminiscences which we
» P. 320. * Id., 322.
i Dec. 29, 1822, Bryan MSS.
4 Bouldin, 75.
502 John Randolph of Roanoke
have already quoted in connection with Randolph's views
on the subject of slavery :
**At the conclusion of the War, he returned to his old
political associates, while my father continued to the end of his
life a zealous and consistent Federalist. After my father's
death, Mr. Randolph was very kind and considerate of my
mother's situation and feelings, often sending her in the most
delicate way some little rarity like fish, or fruit or preserves,
and asking in return some little favor; and, from his knowledge
of her character and habits, he always asked something which
he knew she would be glad to send, and which, from her
reputation as an elegant housewife, he knew also would come
to him with the nicest and most tempting preparation; in this
way, he made the interchange light and pleasant to both. But
these attentions, as well as his visits had gradually become less
and less frequent, so that when I came home from school to
live, although kind feelings existed, there was but little inter-
course between the families. It was therefore, with some
surprise that one morning (when it was well understood among
my associates that I had determined to prepare myself for the
Christian Ministry in the Episcopal Church, and, whether I held
out or not, I was not diligently engaged in my Theological
studies) I received a small package of religious books from Mr.
Randolph, with a cordial invitation to come to see him. This
I did immediately, and, when I reached his house, I met with
the most hearty reception, and found that the reason he had
sent for me was, he had heard of my purpose to *take Orders,*
as he always spoke of my entering the ministry, and to encour-
age me in thus doing so, and to give me his advice as to my
studies and course of reading. I can say with truth that this
was the first encouragement I received from anyone to perse-
vere in my purpose ; the first kind and hearty word that had been
spoken to me in an unhesitating, unequivocal tone and manner,
that held out to me the prospect of honor or usefulness, or
distinction in the course I wished to follow. The nearest thing
to encouragement, that had ever before this been said to me,
was the assertion that I was sincere in my purpose, although it
was doubtful as to my being more useftil in the Clerical Calling
Randolph as a Man 503
than as a wealthy layman in the Church; and that I conld
injure no one, and could give no one cause of complaint, unless
it were to my own family, and that only on the ground of
injury to my estate; but Mr. Randolph's encouragement, and
his approbation of my course was warm and eloquent; he took
me through his library, and pointed out his favorite authors ; at
the same time making remarks and criticisms on them; occa-
sionally reading, particularly from Milton, or quoting from
memory favorite passages from South and Burke. After going
through his library in this way, he then offered me the use of
any book he had, and urged upon me the acceptance, as a pres-
ent, of several valuable Theological works; saying that he was
now old, and they wotild be of no more use to hirn, and telling
me how valuable they would be to me. Before my visit was
over, he became so much interested, and his religious feelings
were so much aroused, that he took down a Prayer Book and,
both of us taking seats, he read the Litany. At many of the
petitions, he would pause, and making [comments] on them,
he wotild direct me how to read them, and point out their
beauty or appropriateness or solemnity. On one petition,
in particular *By thine agony and bloody sweat; by thy cross
and passion; by thy precious death and burial; by thy glorious
resurrection and ascension; and by the Coming of the Holy
Ghost, Good LfOrd deliver us'; he commented at much length;
telling in his own emphatic language — the 'ardentia verba'
which he said himself was eloquence — how this wonderful
petition always affected him. While it lifted his heart and
thoughts to heaven, yet, with what solemn, and almost terrific,
feelings it filled his mind, when he thus called over in prayer to
God the account of our Saviour's sufferings for us. In this way,
we spent nearly the entire day ; and, before parting, he reminded
me the *01d Church' needed propping, and that I could do it;
and the reader can easily understand how a young man wotild
feel at such encouragement and advice from one so capable of
giving them. From that time, for the two short years that he
lived, whenever he was at Roanoke, his house was always
open to me; his library at my command; and he ever ready
to talk with me, and to encourage and advise. Never did he
say an unkind word to me, but, on the contrary, everything he
5<H John Randolph of Roanoke
said to me, either when we were alone together, or in company,
was kind and encouraging, and oftentimes most complimen-
tary. So that whatever others may say of him, or whatever
may have been his faults to others, I have no feelings towards
him but of kindness and reverence; and, when I heard of his
death, I felt that I had lost a friend. And, if I have been of
service to the Church of God, or, if I have won any Souls to
Christ, and I think without vanity I can say I have, no one
gave me so early, so decided, or such intelligent encouragement
to dedicate myself to God in the ministry of his Church, as did
John Randolph of Roanoke.**'
The same kindly characteristics came out the afternoon
before Randolph's death in an interview between him and
Dr. Ethelbert Algernon Coleman. These are the words
in which this interview is recalled in the Doctor's Diary:
'* On hearing the name on my card, he had me sent for, spoke
very affectionately to me, enquired about my family and his
horse-tooth instruments, [that he had asked Dr. Coleman to
have sharpened for him] and, particularly, whether Sister M.
was about to be married, and whether Brother John was to
meet me in Baltimore. He asked me to call, whenever at
leisure, and said he was dying. But, before I saw him again,
he was dead. His temper was particularly mild and even;
and the Landlord said that not more than 34 hour before he
died, on understanding that a young man of his acquaintance
had been refused a sight, he called for paper and pencil to write
him an apology. The writing was at first proper and rational
in its contents, but, towards its end, which could only have
occurred a very few moments before the catastrophe, it ran
into rather a loop concerning the pedigree of some one of his
horses."
Among the letters of affectionate counsel, written by
Randolph, are two to his relation, Richard Ryland Ran-
dolph, when the latter was a medical student at Philadel-
phia. ''Go on, my yotmg friend, " he tells Ryland in one
> Bouldin MSS.
FRANCES BLAND TUCKin
Half Siiter of John Randolph, mad wife of Jiids« Jno. Coalter.
Randolph as a Man 505
of these letters, **and may God prosper your laudable
endeavors to be worthy of the excellent father and friend
whom we both deplore. " ' And then, after some words of
sotmd advice, he says in the same letter :
** There is a struggle in the life of every young man, with
very few exceptions, from 1 6 to 22 whether he shall turn out a
gentleman or a blackguard. On this score, I have no fears
for you whose father was a gentleman (his example you have
had before you until within a few months past) and whose
ancestors for ages have maintained that character. *We have
lost all but our honor,' said Francis I of France; be it our
motto.*'
In another letter, Randolph advises Ryland to keep a
diary and gives him very persuasive reasons why he shotdd
do so. In the same letter conmienting on the rule which
Ryland had laid down for himself, * ' not to follow any of the
maxims of the young men of the present day, " he, while
declaring the rule to be an excellent one, shrewdly suggests
that, at the same time, there was no necessity for Ryland
letting the young men know it except by his conduct. He
then digresses into these amusing observations on the
improper transposition of words :
"In short, I hear nobody who does not transpose the two
verbs to lie and to lay, *A fine ship — she lays at Miurays
wharf.* Query, eggs or wagers? 'Won't you lay down?'
What? my hat, or my principles? This unfortunate word
happens to be the infinitive of one verb and the preterite of the
other : this may have led to the confusion. Perhaps, the odious
sound to lie, in one sense of the term, has also led to its discard
— if you will suffer me to make a noun of a verb (Nouns turned
into verbs meet you everjrwhere. I have heard *to courtmartial
an officer') ; to which picquet familiarized my ear, when I was a
boy, and played that game with the best of mothers; to whom
I am indebted for what little knowledge I possess of the idiom
' Georgetown, March 8, 18 16, Maine Hist. Soc.
5o6 John Randolph of Roanoke
and orthoepy of the English language. 'Laid' for lain is
equally common.
** Learn for teach is another error almost as general. Some
of the tenses of the verb to sit, for set, are also very common.
*He sat off yesterday,' for he set off (i.e., did set, for this verb is
inflexible, referring to change in any of its tenses) . The sun set
last evening at 56 minutes past five. It is not uncommon to
hear this verb used for the other. *Is the house setting?'
'Setting what — ^razors or hens?' 'Will you set down.' *No,
but you ought to be set dawn for bad grammar.' 'Sowed,
for 'sown,* altho not, like the rest, false, yet it is not good. The
people, among whom you reside, are not famous for their cor-
rectness in language, altho they laugh in their cockney tongue
at the Virginians who richly deserve it for their whar and thar
and stars (i.e., stairs); about as near as the truth as weer or
wer, theer or ther, and steen. For orthoepy, I refer you to
Walker, altho he cannot be always relied on. I hope that you
do not pronounce 'kind,' 'sky,' with the k hard: but that you
soften the sound like that of c in cards and of g in garden and
guard. I hope too that you do not say obleeged for obliged."*
(a)
To some of his older relations, too, Randolph was fer-
vidly attached. One was his brother Richard. ' ' He was
the best and truest of brothers, " Randolph said in a letter
to James Monroe. Sawyer states that Richard was "a
man of great personal beauty and superior talents. "* He
might have added that he had the faculty of winning
affection, which we are almost tempted to say is, if not
abused, a better thing than either.
Of Judith, too, Randolph was very fond, notwithstand-
ing the impatience that he occasionally exhibited with
her positive characteristics, which were, doubtless, asserted
not more emphatically than his own temperament at
times made necessary. The few letters from her to him,
which still exist, show that he was both esteemed and
' Georgetown, Mar. 17, 1816, Maine Hist. Soc.
» Sawyer, 6.
Randolph as a Man 507
beloved by her. Though, in a letter to Creed Taylor, she
very properly sought the independent advice of the latter
on certain points, aflfecting the pecuniary interests of her
sons, which had arisen out of the partition of a portion of
the estate of Randolph's father between Randolph and her
husband's estate, and even called attention to the fact that,
while she had lived **but a little removed from poverty, ' *
Randolph had made purchases of real estate to the extent
of upwards of £3,000, she yet disclaimed any intent what-
ever to reflect upon his integrity, and said : * * To you, my
dear Sir, I need not mention the long and affectionate
attachment I have cherished for the brother of him who
was the best ot husbands. " * As to Taylor himself, he is dis-
tinctly on record as expressing the opinion that Randolph
was * ' one of the most honest men in the world . " ^ Nothing
need be added to what we have already said about the
estimation in which Judith's proficiency as a domestic
manager was held by Randolph. In an early letter to
his friend, Wm. Thompson, he spoke of her as *'that pat-
tern of female virtue. " ^ In another letter to Thompson,
he described her as a woman who united to talents of the
first order a degree of cultivation uncommon in any
coimtry, but especially in ours.-* Not only William S.
Lacy, in his Recollections, but John Randolph Bryan, too,
has testified to the love that Randolph bore for Judith. ^
He often visited her after he left Bizarre, and her name
several times appears in his journals as a visitor at Roa-
noke. Indeed, in one of her letters to him she says that
she hopes soon to be up again, and ready to return to
Roanoke, and enter upon her new occupation as house-
keeper; but this, apparently, she never did.^
' March 17, 18 10, Creed Taylor Papers.
■ Creed Taylor Papers,
3 Garland, v. i, 173.
4/d.,i67.
« Letter to Mr. Robertson, Mar. 27, 1818, Bryan MSS.
• Undated, Bryan MSS.
5o8 John Randolph of Roanoke
After the death of Tudor, and St. George's loss of reason,
Judith, between grief and declining health, presents her-
self to us as little more than a Niobe — all tears. Subse-
quent to these events, she became even more intimate
than before with Dr. John H. Rice and his wife, and died
at their home in Richmond, where she had resided, agree-
ably with their repeated invitations, ever since the death
of Tudor, on March lo, 1816*; leaving a will by which she
made Randolph one of her executors and bequeathed a
legacy of $1,000 to Dr. Rice; which that able and good
man, moved partly by the fear that his kindness to her in
her later years might be ascribed to mercenary motives,
distributed among various Christian charities which he
knew that she had patronized, when living." Such a
pronounced pietist was Judith, after her conversion to
Presbyterianism, that Randolph in one of his letters to
Dr. Dudley once said: **I heard from Bizarre today. All
there are well. I shall not be disappointed if a lady of our
acquaintance should give her hand to some Calvinistic
parson. '' ^ Very noble in spirit and form is a letter from
Randolph to Dr. Rice, which was written six days after
Judith's death, and which furnishes us with but another
proof that the affection and respect that Judith and Ran-
dolph felt for each other was never really shaken :
**Your letter of the 13th is this moment received. The
others have all come to hand, although generally one or two
days later than the due course of mail. They would demand
my most grateful acknowledgements, if they were not already
due for obligations of a far higher nature — obligations by which
I am bound not less to Mrs. Rice than to yourself.
** After the first sharp pang was over, I could not but view
Mrs. Randolph's departure as a release from sufferings that it
is to be hoped have few examples ; from a world that no longer
» J. R.*s Diary.
» Memoir of Dr, John H. Rice, by Wm. Maxwell, 125 (note).
* Roanoke, Oct. 29, 18 10, Letters to a Y. R., 73.
Randolph as a Man 509
had a single charm for her. I knew her better than anybody
else. Her endowments were of the highest order; and it gave
me the greatest comfort, of which under such circumstances I
am susceptible, to learn that she died as every Christian could
wish to die. The manner, in which she spoke of me in her last
moments, is also truly grateful.
**I received your letter, annoimcing that her case was a
doubtful one, the day after Mr. Leigh's, which arrived on
Saturday. His was much the more alarming of the two.
On Sunday morning, I awoke with the strongest impression on
my mind that Mrs. R. was no more: and, while penning the
note for the prayers of the Church agreeable to our service, I
felt almost restrained by the consideration of impiety in de-
precating that which God had willed and done. I shook it off
however; but I could not shake off the impression that she was
in the land of spirits. I almost saw her pale and shadowy,
purified from the dross of the body, — ^looking sorrowfully yet
benignantly upon me. * * *
The last words uttered by Tudor and his mother, re-
spectively, certify as nothing but similar words could do
to the profound spiritual change infused by Presbyterian-
ism into the class of Southside Virginians of which Judith
was a representative. Those of Tudor were: "Don't
grieve for me, for I die happy *' ; those of Judith : * ' Christ
is my only hope. '* ^
Tenderer still were the relations of Randolph to his
sister Fanny Bland Tucker, who afterwards became the
wife of John Coalter. His letters to St. George Tucker
frequently contain loving messages to her when she was a
mere girl. It is to be deeply regretted that his letters to
"her, with a few exceptions, should have perished, as so
much else from his pen did ; but a nimiber of her letters to
him are extant, and they reveal an unusual capacity for
fluent and correct composition, a rare degree of fidelity to
all the domestic virtues, a heart overflowing with love not
* Georgetown, Mar. 16, 1816, Memoir of Dr, Jno. H. Rice, 125.
' Id.f 119 (note) and 124 (note).
510 John Randolph of Roanoke
only for her husband and children, but for her kith and
kin generally ; and alas ! besides the consumptive habit of
body which finally brought her to the grave, but which
never beclouded her spirits nor fretted the pure rich flow
of her affections. It is impossible to read her letters to
Randolph without feeling that she too must have been in
his mind when he depicted in such a happy manner in the
House the Virginia matron and her distaff. Her letters
to Randolph abotmd in references to her children, includ-
ing the one whom she terms Randolph's favorite, and sup-
ply one more additional proof of the partiaUty that Ran-
dolph felt for children. In one letter she sends him the
love of her children, and their thanks for a present which
he has just made to them.* In another, referring to
Randolph's "little favorite," she says: "Saint is a fine
fellow. I am sure you will love him more than ever. ""
One of the most earnest cravings of her heart during the
period covered by her letters was that there should be a
reunion of all the descendants of her mother and their
wives and children tmder one roof.
"How much pleasure, my dear brother," she exclaims in one
of her letters to Randolph, "would it give me could I see you,
with the whole of the Roanoke-Bizarre families, together with
Henry's and my own family, under one roof. No matter
which of our houses, but let us hope ere we die to be once
altogether. I am in the center, and, therefore, hope you will
all give this spot (Elm Grove) the preference — ^at least I think
you ought to do so.*'^
In the succeeding year she recurs to the same subject,
revealing again as she does so the deep love that she enter-
tained for Randolph :
"I wish," she said, "to hold some affectionate intercourse
with one so dear to me; to tell you of my children, and to know
« Mar. 1 8, 1809, Bryan MSS.
'May II, 181 1, Id. > Aug. 19, 1810, Bryan MSS,
Randolph as a Man 511
in return something of yourself — ^at least to read assurance of
your continued love for me. Be convinced I think much of
you, and lament the destiny which has so widely separated us.
I had hoped to see you last Fall, but we were baffled in our
attempts to visit you. I trust, however, a day may come when
we shall be under your roof. Meantime, my object is to meet
altogether in this place, and I entreat you not to disappoint
me. Brother Henry has promised to bring his family with
him in July ; Beverley and Polly will be with us too, according
to appointment, and you, my dear brother, will not withhold
your presence. I am sure you could not, if you knew how
anxiously we wish to have such a group in our house."*
And so she continued to write to him as long as her sweet
spirit resided in its ** fleshly nook. "
And these were the endearing terms in which Randolph
wrote to her a year or so after he became a member of the
House:
** I thank you most cordially, my beloved Fan, for yotir much
valued letter. It was rendered even more acceptable to me
by a circumstance which you will find no difficulty in divining.
That 'delicate refinement known to few' served but to endear
you yet more to your fond brother, whose heart has not been
for many days unoccupied during a single moment by your
image. Forgive him, my sister, if in his late letter there
escaped one thought which could give you uneasiness. There
was not one sentiment, which it contained, which was not
dedicated by the tenderest solicitude for you. For you, at this
moment, does his heart throb with anxious affection. Yes, my
dearest Fan, I do love you not as ever, but infinitely more.
So does our poor dear Judy ; although she does not express it so
frequently to you. After you have perused the enclosed, re-
turn it to me.
**I do not admit your excuse, even if there were foundation
for it. I deny that elegance of style constitutes the beauty of
letter-writing. Could you write like Lady Montague or
Madame de S6vign6, it would gratify me, no doubt, but it is
'Apr. 4, 181 1, Bryan MSS.
512 John Randolph of Roanoke
neither the style, nor the matter which is most valuable to me
in your letters. It is yourself. It is the token of your love
which, if it consisted of the initials of your name only, iffNAj^-.
be valuable to me. How am I obliged to you for plajnbag
tunes for my sake. I shall become as much attached as ycHx \
to the organ, since it is both the memento of my affectiottj
you and the instrument by which you express your r^atd
me. Alas! I scarcely ever see Mrs. Mason; nor have I
Miss Lloyd but for a few moments during the winter. L
no musick. I mingle in no diversions. But I want not
thing to remind me of the best and most beloved of
Adieu my darling Fan. Love him who is truly and
ably yours. John Randolph, Jr."'
And love each other they did tmtil the very last.
Henry St. George Tucker, Randolph's "uterine
er,*' as he called him, was one of the correspondeati*^
whom Randolph wrote almost as often as he did to
Brockenbrough or Tazewell. He was an admirable
in point of intellect, character, disposition, and
and Randolph was not only truly attached to him, but hBiSi^
a profound underlying respect for him besides. This
natural enough, for no public man, except a few of the
first rank, ever occupied a higher place in the admiral
of the people of Virginia than Henry St. George Tu<
**In short, in my opinion,'' Judge E. C. Burks, long
conspicuous member of the Virginia Court of A]
himself, declared, ** Judge Tucker stands first in the bi
catalogue of Virginia's distinguished jurists; inter partik
facile princeps. ' ' * \^;^
Of Henry St. George Tucker, when he was a member d|.
Congress, Sawyer says that he was little inferior to Ranf^
dolph as a debater, and he contrasts the disposition and
temper of the former with those of the latter, decidedly to
the disadvantage of the latter. But we know nothing
* Washington, Jan. 26, 1802, Maine Hist. Soc.
« Va. Law Register ^ Mar. 1896, No. 11, v. i, 810.
NRV ST. acORQE TUCKCR
le Hon. H«DTy St. Goorss Tacker. Leiinftoa, Vft.
Randolph as a Man 5^3
whatever to justify Sawyer's statement that "there ap-
peared no such evident marks of familiar affection and
attachment between them during the time they served
together as we were led to suspect from their near rela-
tionship. "* On the contrary, the frequency with which
Randolph wrote to Henry St. George Tucker, the deep
concern which he exhibited when the latter was severely
injured in a stage-coach accident in 1816, and the affec-
tionate references to him in Randolph's letters to third
persons, from the early part of Randolph's life tmtil its
last hours, all fully warrant the view that we have taken
of the relations of the two brothers. In one of his letters
to St. George Tucker, Randolph said: **When I reflect
too that it is your intention to settle Henry in a distant
quarter, where I can never see and seldom hear from him,
it brings the most mournful recollections and presages to
my mind."* In another letter to his step-father, Ran-
dolph said playfully: "My love to dear Fan. Why do
not the boys write to me? Beg Hal's pardon for this
insult to [the] toga virilis. " ^ In 1 8 1 1 , Randolph wrote to
Dr. Dudley that he had reached Richmond half dead, but
that he had been amply compensated by meeting with his
dear brother Henry. -* Some 10 or 12 years later, he wrote
to his niece : * ' What have I done to Uncle Henry that he
will not write to me?"^ And, some three years later,
after Henry St. George Tucker had visited him at Roa-
noke, he said in his vivid way : ' ' This visit of your Uncle
Henry has spoiled me. A sudden flash of lightning makes
the succeeding darkness more intense. " ^ It was in the
succeeding year that he wrote to his niece that he had
given up all his correspondents for a time, even her Uncle
' P. 73.
* Bizarre, Nov. 3, 1801, Lucas MSS.
» Jan. 10, 1803, Id,
* Hanover C. H., Nov. i, 181 1, Letters toaY, 1?., 1 14.
s Bryan MSS.
* Roanoke, Jul. 27, 1825, Bryan MSS.
VOL- n. — 33
5H John Randolph of Roanoke
Henry.* The correspondence was too agreeable to be
long abandoned, and, two years later, he enclosed a letter
from ** Harry " to him to his niece, saying that she would
read it with great pleasure if it gave her a hand-breadth
part of the pleasure that it had given him. * At one time,
he seems to have written to Henry every day.^ In 1828,
his affection for him was still tmdiminished, as was proved
by a letter to his niece in which he said : * * I have now only
brother Harry and you to be proud of. Tell him to write
to me before he leaves Chatham, and as soon as he gets
home. "^ Randolph sometimes visited his brother at his
home at Winchester, and Henry was occasionally at
Roanoke. In one of his letters to his niece, Randolph
said that he wished very much to see his brother Henry,
even if it were but for a minute. ^ In 1829, he noted with
gratification, in a letter to Dr. Brockenbrough, the fact
that the affection of his brother Henry for him was increas-
ing with their advancing years. ^ A few days later, he
wrote to the same friend that he did not know anywhere
a more usef td and respectable man than his brother. ^
While the two brothers were separated during the course
of their lives for considerable intervals of time, they were
never, so far as we are aware, in the slightest degree
estranged from each other at any time. "If my dear
brother Harry be not gone, entreat him to come to me on
the receipt of this, " were among the last words that Ran-
dolph ever penned, and were written when he was on his
way to his deathbed at Philadelphia. * (a)
Randolph's cynical distrust of the medical fraternity
« Mar. 25, 1826, Bryan MSB.
•Jan. 8, 1828, /d.
i L. W. Tazewell, Jr., MSS., March 8, 1826.
4 Roanoke, Oct. 7, 1828, Bryan MSS.
» Mar. 6, 1824, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
* Jan. 26, 1829, Mrs. Gilbert S. Meem MSS.
» Jan. 31, 1829, Id,
• Garland, v. 2, 365.
Randolph as a Man 515
made an amusing story of the professional attentions
bestowed upon Henry after the stage-coach accident, to
which we have referred.
"Now what do you think," he wrote to Dr. Dudley.
"Henry T.'s shoulder, that was at first neither dislocated nor
broken, but then dislocated by the same doctor, (neither
physician nor surgeon), next, by *two able Winchester physi-
cians,' pronounced not to be dislocated, but fractured in the
process of the scapula, then, by the same 'two able' leeches
(reconsidering their opinion, like Congress, in order to make
confusion worse confounded,) declared to be a dislocation,
unusual, of the os humeri; whereupon the said 'doctors* and
'four strong men* put the said patient to the rack, without suc-
ceeding in tearing asunder all the muscles and ligaments. This
injury has been decided by P. W., and D., (we have now got to
the Court of Appeals, and can go no further, — ^right or wrong,
the case is decided) to be a fracture of the os humeril and my
poor brother is likely to be able to attend Congress before the
end of the session. This beats Moli^re, or Le Sage, hollow.
" Now, my dear Theodore, for I think I shall never call you
'Doctor' again, on the receipt of this, let the wagons set out, if
they have a load, for Manchester."*
A remarkable letter is the following written by Ran-
dolph to Henry shortly after the death of the latter's eldest
son in 1826. It is all the more remarkable in that it was
penned after the paroxysm of religious enthusiasm, which
overthrew Randolph's reason in 181 8, had subsided:
'*May he, who has the power and always the will, when
earnestly, himibly and devoutly entreated, support and
comfort you, my brother! I shall not point to the treasures
that remain to you in your surviving children, and their mother
dearer than all of them put together. No, I have felt too
deeply how little power have words, that play arotmd the head,
to reach the heart, when it is sorely wounded. The conmaon-
places of consolation are at the tongue's end of all the self-
' Georgetown, Feb. 4, 1817, Letters toa Y. R., 186.
5i6 John Randolph of Roanoke
complacent and satisfied from the pedant priest to the washer-
woman. (They who don't feel can talk.) I abjure them all;
but the father of Lord Russell, when condoled with according
to form, by the book, replied, *I would not give my dead son for
any other man's living.' May this thought come home to
your bosom too; though not on the same occasion. May the
Spirit of God, which is not a chimera of heated brains nor a
device of artful men to frighten and cajole the credulous,
but is as much an existence that can be felt and understood as
the whisperings of yotir own heart, or the love you bore to him
whom you have lost — may that Spirit, which is the Comforter,
shed his influence upon your soul, and incline your heart to the
only right way, which is that of life eternal !
** Did you ever read Bishop Butler's Analogy? If not, I will
send it to you. . . . Have you ever read THE BOOK?
What I say upon this subject I not only believe, but I know to
be true; that the Bible, studied with htmible and contrite
heart, never yet failed to do its work even with them that
from idiosyncracy, or disordered minds have conceived that
they were cut off from its promises of life to come.
** * Ask and ye shall have; seek and ye shall find; knock and
it shall be opened unto you.' This was my only support and
stay during years of misery and darkness; and, just as I had
almost begun to despair, after more than ten years of penitence
and prayer, it pleased God to enable me to see the truth to
which until then my eyes had been sealed. To this vouch-
safement I have made the most ungrateful return. But I
would not give up my slender portion of the price paid for our
redemption — ^yes, my brother, our redemption — ^the ransom
of sinners — of all who do not hug their chains and refuse to
come out from the house of bondage — I say I would not ex-
change my little portion in the Son of David for the Parthian
or Roman Empires, as described by Milton in the temptation
of our Lord and Saviour — not for all with which the enemy
tempted the Saviour of men.
** This is the secret of the change of my spirits which all who
know me must have observed within a few years past. After
years spent in humble and contrite entreaty that the tremen-
dous sacrifice on Mount Calvary might not have been made in
Randolph as a Man 517
vain for me, the chiefest of sinners, it pleased God to speak
his peace into my heart — that peace of God which passeth all
understanding to them that know it not and even to them that
do; and, although I have now, as then, to reproach myself with
time mis-spent and faculties mis-employed; although my
condition has on more than one occasion resembled that of
him, who, having an evil spirit cast out of him, was taken
possession of by seven other spirits more wicked than the first,
and the first also — ^yet I trust that they too, by the power and
mercy of God, ipay be, if they are not, vanquished.
** But where am I running to? On this subject more here-
after. Meanwhile, assure yourself of what is of small value
compared with that of them that are a piece of yourself — of the
unchanged regard and sympathy of your mother's son. . . .
Ignorant of true religion, but not yet an atheist, I remember,
with horror, my impious expostulations with God upon this
breavement [the death of his mother], 'But not yet an
atheist.' The existence of Atheism has been denied. But I
was an honest one — and poor — ^too. Htune began and Hobbes
finished me. (I read Spinoza and all the tribe.) Surely, I fell
by no ignoble hand. And the very man [Edmund Randolph],
who gave me Hume's Essay on Human Nature to read, admin-
istered 'Beattie on Truth' as the antidote. Venice treacle
against arsenic and the essential oil of bitter almonds; a bread
and milk poultice for the bite of the Cobra Capello.
** Had I remained a successful political leader, I might never
have been a Christian. But it pleased God that my pride
should be mortified; that, by death and desertion, I should lose
my friends; that, except in the veins of a maniac, and he too
possessed *of a deaf and dimib spirit,' there should not run one
drop of my father's blood in any living creature besides myself.
The death of Tudor finished my himiiliation. I had tried all
things but the refuge of Christ, and to that, with parental
stripes, was I driven.
** Often did I cry out with the father of that wretched boy,
'Lord I believe, help thou my unbelief* ; and the gracious mercy
of our Lord to this wavering faith, staggering under the force
of the hard heart of unbelief, I humbly hoped would, in his
good time, be extended to me also. — St. Mark, ix, 17-29.
5^8 John Randolph of Roanoke
Throw Revelation aside, and I can drive any man by irresistible
induction to Atheism. John Marshall cotdd not resist me.
When I say any man, I mean a man capable of logical and
consequential reasoning. Deism is the refuge of them that
startle at Atheism and can't believe Revelation. And poor
(may God forgive us both !) and myself used, with Diderot
and Co., to laugh at the Deistical Bigots who must have milk,
not being able to digest meat.
** All Theism is derived from revelation; that of the Jews
confessedly. Our own is from the same source. So is the
false revelation of Mahomet; and I can't much blame the
Turks for considering the Franks and Greeks to be Idolaters.
Every other idea of one God, that floats in the world, is derived
from the tradition of the sons of Noah, handed down to
posterity.
'* But enough and more than enough. I can hardly guide my
pen. I will, however, add, that no lukewarm seeker ever
became a real Christian; for 'from the days of John the Baptist
until now the Kingdom of Heaven suflEereth violence and the
violent take it by force.' A text which I read 500 times, before
I had the slightest conception of its application.""
After Randolph's death, Henry St. George Tucker was
very much shocked by the aspersions which the will of
1 82 1 cast upon the integrity of his father; but, in the dis-
charge of his divided duty to the memory of his father
and to the memory of his brother, he exhibited an extra-
ordinary degree of impartial affection. Referring to
letters which he had received from his brother Beverley
and Wm. Leigh, he wrote to John Randolph Bryan :
**The letters disclose more and more unpleasant matters
in connection with my brother's will. They compel the
descendants of St. George Tucker to believe that, for many
years, their brother was, by the visitation of God's providence,
bereft of reason; or to feel a strong sentiment of indignation at
the caltunnious assertion found in his will of '22 of one of
» Southern Collegian, March 23, 1872.
Randolph as a Man 5^9
the purest and most virtuous of men. Should that will be
brought forward, I for one will resist it ; since I never can admit
my brother's sanity in an instrument that either brands my
dear father as a fraudulent guardian and plunderer, or holds
my brother out as a calumniator and slanderer. *'*
Randolph's relations to his half-brother, Beverley
Tucker, were also, on the whole, very affectionate. In
his early letters to St. George Tucker, he sends the same
fraternal messages to Beverley as to Henry. In one of
them, he refers to the two brothers as ''those dear fel-
lows. " * * * My dear Beverley, * * he said in another, * ' must
not blame me for not answering his kind letter by Mr.
Bassett. I am as ever his entirely.*** Subsequently,
after the marriage of Beverley to Miss Mary Coalter, the
sister of Judge John Coalter, he took up his residence at
Roanoke, and practiced law in the surroimding territory. *
And here he remained until the year 1815, when he
emigrated to Missouri, where he soon became a judge.
Later, he returned to Virginia, and died there after a
distinguished career as a law-lecturer and a man of letters.
Not long after Beverley removed to Roanoke, Ran-
dolph conveyed to him a tract of land near Roanoke, and
transferred to him a number of slaves with whom to
cidtivate it; and Beverley also received some assistance
from his father. But, under the influence of the feelings,
excited by the suspended expectations of early professional
life, and the burdens of domestic responsibility, he was
overtaken by a fit of despondency which elicited this most
aflEectionate letter from Randolph :
**It grieves me, my dear brother, to see you so unhappy.
If I do not betray concern, it is not because I do not feel it, and
' Letter from Mrs. Bryan to Mrs. Lelia Tucker, Eagle Point, Sept. 19,
1833. Bryan MSS.
•Richm., Apr. 30, 1798, Lucas MSS.
» Balto., Dec. 17, 1805, Lucas MSS., J. R. to St. Geoxige Tucker.
4 Bizarre, Nov. 14, 1809, Lucas MSS. .
520 John Randolph of Roanoke
I do assure you that I have found much diflSculty to command
myself when I have seen you so greatly agitated or sunk into
the most spiritless dejection. Time, however, teaches tis
many things which we little dreamed of in early life; it cannot
teach me, however, to be insensible to the sufferings of those
whom I love, from whatsoevei cause they may proceed. This
house, such as it is, is yours, so long as you please to occupy
it. It will at least afford a shelter to yourself and your wife.
The land at Daniel's and the labor of Doll's children (I con-
clude that your father has given you Abraham) will insure
you bread. But, my dear Bev., can you ever want whilst I
have anything left in this world I Should I survive you, which
is hardly possible, your family shall be to me as my own. I
cannot write "'
While Beverley resided at Roanoke, or on his own land
nearby, the most familiar and affectionate relations
existed between Randolph and him and his wife Polly.
On one occasion, Beverley wrote to Randolph that Polly
was quite ** crazy" to see him^; and, in one of his letters
to his sister, Randolph asks her to congratidate Polly, who
was at the time near Staunton, in his name on her mater-
nal honors. ^ (a) It is said that, whenever Beverley was at
Roanoke, he sat at the foot of Randolph's table, unless
there was some clergyman present to occupy the place.*
Before his emigration to Missouri, he acquired a good pro-
fessional footing in Southside Virginia, and his engage-
ments as a lawyer are occasionally brought to our atten-
tion in Randolph's journals. His mobility, however, was
responsible for several indications of slight impatience
on Randolph's part: ''I fear I shall lose the opportunity
of Beverley. He has been missing ever since yesterday
morning,"^ Randolph wrote on one occasion to Dr.
' Geo. P. Coleman MSS.
^ Roanoke, June 17, 18 10, Bryan MSS.
i Charlotte C. H., Aug. 19, 181 1, J. C. Grinnan MSS.
* Bouldin, 24.
«Richm., Jan. 24, 1814, Letters to a Y, R., 151.
JUDQC N. BEVCRLCV TUCKCn
Prom B ponnit ownid bj Gaorga P. Colasun, Btq., Of WillUmibntg, Va.
Randolph as a Man 521
Dudley. In a later letter, he wrote to Dr. Dudley: *'To
my surprise I received a letter from Beverley, dated the
loth, at Richmond/ London would not have been more
unexpected.""
When Beverley made up his mind to return to Virginia,
Randolph was eager to welcome him back. ''More than
half of the allotted time within which you 'must be in
Missouri' has elapsed, '* he wrote to Beverley at St. Louis
on the eve of his return to Virginia, '*or I would set out
tomorrow for Winchester to see you once more before I
die, and something tells me that that time is not far off. *'
In conclusion, he says: ** Write to me as often as you can;
the oftener the better, and the longer the better. "*
After Beverley's return to Virginia, we occasionally find
him in close companionship with Randolph, both in
Charlotte County and at Washington, and it was Ran-
dolph's desire that he should succeed him as the represen-
tative of his old District in the House. ^
After Randolph's death, Beverley was particularly
active in the prosecution of the attacks on his wills, which
resulted in the final compromise; and among his papers,
which are still in existence, is an interesting one, dated
May 15, 1836, in which John R. Cooke, one of the counsel
in the Randolph will litigation, outlined to John G. Mosby,
another eminent Virginia lawyer of that day, his reasons
for thinking that the insanity of Randolph could be
judicially established. The paper is a curious specimen
of the unhesitating zeal with which a lawyer, when he
wishes to make out a case for his client, will undertake to
construct a stone wall out of batter puddings. He was
even prepared to assert that Randolph was insane in i8l I,
1812, 1814, and 1815, as well as in i8i8, 1819, and 1820.*
' Apr. 15, 1816, Id., 177.
' Roanoke, May 27, 1825, Geo. P. Coleman MSS.
J Testimony of Dr. Brockcnbrough in Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's
Exor., Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg, Va.
4 George P. Coleman MSS.
522 John Randolph of Roanoke
To Beverley Tucker we owe a slight sketch of Ran-
dolph/ More important, however, is the following
tribute which he paid to him in an address delivered
before the students ot Randolph-Macon College.
''Gentlemen,*' he said, in thife address, **if there be any
truth in the ideas I have laid before you, I owe the knowledge
of that truth to one of those illustrious men whose names
you have consecrated by adopting them as the designation of
your institution. You have engraven the name of Randolph
on the shrine here erected to Literature, to Science and to God.
What offering so fit for that altar; what offering so proper for
me to lay upop it as this poor attempt to embody and preserve
something of the teaching of that deep sagacity and profound
wisdom which distinguished him, and which he labored to
impart to me. Love to the brother, gratitude to the bene-
factor, even these sentiments should be subordinate to my
veneration for the man from whose eloquent lips I have learned
more than from all my own experience and reflection, and from
all the men with whom I have ever conversed, and from all the
books I have ever read."*
The fraternal kindness, of which Randolph made Bever-
ley the object, is also alluded to in one of the letters
from Fanny Bland Coalter to Randolph. Speaking o^
Beverley and his newly-married wife, she says :
*'Our brother and sister leave tomorrow, my dearest
brother, and I cannot withhold my congratulations to you on
their marriage; not only as an event, which promises much
comfort to you during your days of leisure, but an unexhaust-
ible source of gratification in the reflection that their happiness
is the consequence of your own beneficence — the purest
happiness surely which mortal can know. May they both, my
beloved brother, by their gratitude and affectionate attention
towards you, prove a solace and support to you in the hours of
pain and sickness, so many of which fall to your lot."^
« Hist. Mag., V. 2 (1859), 187.
» Sou. Lit. Mess., v. 12, 551 1. 1 Mar. 18, 1809, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 523
An effort was made in the Randolph will litigation to
show that, before Beverley went off to Missouri, a serious
estrangement had sprung up between him and Randolph,
but the effort did not get very far. The basis for it
apparently was a statement of Randolph's that he had
given to Beverley the only slaves of his that were unen-
cxmibered by the British debt, and also a tract of land in
Charlotte Coimty to enable him to support his family;
that the slaves were connected by family ties with other
slaves retained by him ; that it was understood by Bever-
ley and himself that, as soon as the slaves retained by him
were released from the encumbrance, Beveriey and he
were to make an exchange of slaves that would restore
those that had been given to Beverley by Randolph and
their former family ties ; but that Beverley had failed to
carry out his part of the understanding. ' At this late
day, this statement can have no value beyond that of a
merely ex parte one, which rested, besides, on oral testi-
mony only; and the prudence of not accepting it too
quickly is suggested likewise by the fact that the blame
for the miscarriage of the understanding was cast by
Randolph upon St. George Tucker. " And it is noticeable
that the same witness, who testified to the statement in
the Randolph will litigation, also testified that, on the
first occasion that he saw Randolph and Beverley together
after Beverley's return from Missouri, Randolph treated
the latter with great kindness and affection, and that their
relations at a later date were those of ** great intimacy. "^
The truth is that Randolph's brothers and sisters of the
half-blood loved and admired him in the highest degree,
and were warmly loved and admired by him in turn, and
that, if any fugitive cloud ever threw its shadow over his
' Deposition of John Marshall in Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor.,
Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg, Va.
I Ibid.
524 John Randolph of Roanoke
intercourse with any one of the three, the fact was solely
due to his own idiosyncracies.
But where coidd we go to find an)rthing more charming
or more suggestive of himian nature in its purest and
tenderest moments than the intercourse between Ran-
dolph and his niece — Elizabeth T. Coalter? Here and
there among the ntmierous letters from him to her there
are inflections of misanthropy, spiritual weariness, and
physical pain ; but, as a whole, these letters are not morbid
enough to forfeit their right to be compared with the best
of the sort in any language.
One of them invites his niece to pay him a visit at
Roanoke.
**My dear,** he says, ** can't you and Fanny come down
sometime or other to see me — your mother's brother? I do
expect St. George but suppose him to be confined at school.
I assure you my shades are as cool, as free from dust, as Bush
Hill; and as for noises, I hear none but the warbling of the
birds and the barking of the squirrels around my windows.
I am here buried in a solitude as deep as that of Robinson
Crusoe himself, and like him yearn after the converse of man-
kind. I have a few pretty well selected books and a very
gentle saddle horse, and, although I am nearly worn down
with disease and premature old age, I can ride at the sober
pace that suits a lady.*''
A letter in the succeeding year has a word of praise for
natural, unstudied letter-writing; and from this subject
Randolph deviates to some tart criticism of the changes
made in the style and idiom of the Bible and the Episcopal
Book of Common Prayer by ** pudding-bellied bishops."*
In the same letter, he offers to replace his niece's favorite
pony with a horse which he would have thoroughly broken
for her, he said.
Instruction in one form or another was rarely out of his
' Roanoke, Jun. 12, 1821, Bryan MSS.
* Washington, Jan. 27, 1822, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 525
mind when he was writing to his niece; and the letter
concludes with an enumeration of the famous English
writers that he would have her take as models for the
formation of her style.
**Were you ever struck/' he asks, **with the exceeding
beauty of two little morsels, Goldsmith's 'When Lovely
Woman Stoops to Folly,' and Collins',
4< <
How sleep the brave who sink to rest
By all their country's wishes blest.*
How simple the words! By the way, Collins had true inspira-
tion. It deserted Milton when he added the two last lines of
his Paradise LosL'*
m
In another letter, he counsels her not to be afraid of
plenty of fresh air, and warns her against the dangers of
a stooping posture. "
In his correspondence with his niece, he was at great
pains to see that she did not fall into artificial or preten-
tious forms of expression. On one occasion, he tells her
that her reflections on sickness and adversity are, with the
exception of a line and a half, well written; and, after
quoting the words which met with his disapproval, he
comments as follows :
***Why this is affectations,' as Sir Hugh says. There is a
good deal of the same sort in Mrs. (not Lady) Montague's
letters, and there is nothing else in Miss Anne Seward's, in
fifty-nine volumes folio, which have been published, as her will
directs, by her executor."
But he makes everjrthing right by ending: *'God bless
you, my dear. I have a charming copy of Shakespeare
for you."^
If he had been her lover, he could not have manifested
' Feb. 18, 1822, Bryan MSS.
•Washington, Feb. 5, 1822. Bryan MSS.
5^6 John Randolph of Roanoke
more concern than he did when he heard that her cough
was still dry and a good deal harassing. '
On one occasion, he had evidently inculcated modera-
tion of language on the part of his niece just a little too
earnestly ; for we find him employing these soothing words :
"My dear Bet, you can use no language too strong, I am
sure, to express the force of your affection to your father. My
whole design was to repress the habit of using unnecessarily
strong terms. . . . And, although I am no friend to that
figure of speech, which rhetoricians call hyperbole, I am
beginning to feel that I am fast becoming your dearest uncle
or, what is the same thing, you are growing to be my dearest
niece";
and then he leaves the dangerous topic, and goes on to tell
her about the rout which he had just attended at Madame
De Neuville's in Washington: "There," he said, **I saw
our poor wild men like calves fatting and patted by the
butchers to make them quiet under the knife ; imleaming
their best qualities and learning otir worst. My red blood
partook of their injuries.***
When necessary, he did not hesitate to take his niece
quite sharply to task for misuse of language. Referring
on one occasion to her last letter, he said: **You 'have
been dissipating it. ' Dissipating what ? You see at once
the whole matter and that's enough.*'* On another
occasion, he wrote to her:
** However as I hate prosing and commonplace as heartily as
Honest Jack Falstaff did security, I shall not run into them,
and you may be assured my dear that you will never see
'elegantly studied composition* from my pen; above all in a
letter; and, if you will permit me to say so, your own would
have been still better if less pains had been taken with it —
« Feb. 1 8, 1822, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
» Bryan MSS.
» Feb. 19, 1823, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
Randolph as a Man 527
not in orthography or grammar or handwriting, but the
expression, the collocation of words.'* ^
On a third occasion, Randolph begins by telling his
niece : * * That you can write very charming letters I know,
having numerous proofs of the fact in my possession";
but ends by telling her that her last letter ** bears every-
where the mark of effort, constraint and ambition of
ornament, and abounds with alliteration and what the
Italians call conceit.*'^
Once he exercised the privilege of a chaperone, and
admonished her that, when she came in to an evening
party in Richmond from her home at Bush Hill, near that
town, she should pass the night in the city.^ But his
reproofs and admonitions were so liberally intermixed
with approbation and praise that -she would have been
tmreasonable, indeed, if she had accepted them with a
bad grace.
** I would rather see you dead than vain or pert," he said in
one of his letters. **But I hope you can learn to set a just
value upon your far more than ordinary worth, and yet be
entirely free from the disgusting affectation and conceit of the
accomplished miss of the present day. You would not believe
me, if I were to tell you that you are not handsome, not only
because you have heard the contrary from others, but it would
not be true, if I were to say it. Yours is the beauty, not of
complexion or feature, but what they cannot supply, of
expression and of grace. You have a happy and ready wit;
the quickness of your apprehension is uncommon, even in your
sex. I hope that you add to it solidity of judgment, or that
experience will bestow it. Set a proper value upon yourself for
my sake, for your own, for your dear mother's.
**I know not how it happens that very clever men are prone
to ally themselves to very silly and insipid women, and thus
« Washington, Jan. 19, 1822, Bryan MSS.
•Washington. Feb. 14, 1825, Bryan MSS.
1 Feb. 19, 1823, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
528 John Randolph of Roanoke
propagate a race of boobies; or that fine women throw them-
selves away upon coxcombs and doom themselves *to suckle
fools and chronicle small beer.* A fellow with no taste for
literature, a male gossip, with a full portion of admiration for
his own personal charms and attractions, shall do more
execution in a circle of fine women than a man of merit.*"
In a letter, written nine days later, Randolph touches
upon this last topic again. The letter is too well turned
not to be quoted in its entirety.
** My dear child : Do you love gardening? I hope you do,
for it is an emplojrment eminently suited to a lady. That
most graceful and amiable friend of mine, [Mrs. Dr. John
Brockenbrough] whom you now never mention in your letters,
excels in it, and in all the domestic arts that give its highest
value to the female character. The misfortune of your sex is
that you are brought up to think that love constitutes the
business of life, and, for want of other subjects, your heads run
upon little else. This passion, which is *the business of the idle
man, the amusement of the hero, and the bane of the sov-
ereign,' occupies too much of your time and thoughts. I never
knew an idle fellow who was not profligate (a rare case to be
sure), that was not the slave of some princess, and, no matter
how often the subject of his adoration was changed by a mar-
riage with some more fortunate swain, the successor (for there
is no demise of that crown) was quickly invesced with the
attributes of her predecessor, and he was dying of love for her
lest he should die of the gapes. To a sorry fellow of this sort a
mistress is as necessary an antidote against ennui as tobacco;
but to return to gardening, I never saw one of those innumer-
able and lovely seats in England without wishing for one for
Mrs. B. [Brockenbrough] who would know so well how to
enjoy while she admired it.
**Do you read French? If not, why not? You are not one
day too old to learn that and Italian, and everything else that
a lady ought to know — even Greek, if you wish to imitate
Lady Jane Grey. I want you to read Madame S^vign^'s
' Washington, Mar. 12, 1824, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
Randolph as a Man 529
letters, and not in a translation. I want you to be mistress of
the Roman mouth and the Tuscan tongue. God bless you."'
A few weeks later, he tells Elizabeth that a Washington
coachmaker had promised to complete a little carriage for
him by the adjournment of Congress, and that she must
hold herself in readiness to accompany him from Rich-
mond to Roanoke ; and he asks her to extend his invitation
to her father, her step-mother, and her brother, and to
Mammy Aggy too ; and it was perhaps to make certain of
her that he told her in the same letter that her last letter
was admirably written and that, if the manner fell short of
the inimitable grace of Madame de S6vign6, the thoughts
and the language too would not be unbecoming the pen of
Lady Wortley. In short, it was just what a letter ought
to be with one **leetle*' exception (as his good Southside
friend. Major Scott, used to say) . *
Another letter brings before us in a single group Eliza-
beth, her mother, and her grandmother.
** You do right, my dear, in setting your mother as a constant
example before your eyes, and you have drawn her character
with fidelity and spirit. May you resemble her in everything
but the fragility of her constitution; but more especially may
the likeness be found in that cheerful alacrity of temper that
made all around her smile. This is a blessing, as far surpassing
bodily health as the mind is superior to the body; for it is
mental health. I knew your mother well from infancy to
childhood, from childhood to womanhood. All the dis-
advantages, and they were innumerable, of her early orphan-
age could not render her unworthy to be called the daughter
of that most distinguished woman her mother; and I will add of
calling you her daughter. Her understanding was of the first
order; not overlaid by accomplishments, nor yet unimproved.
Hardly a day passes over my head that I do not think of her/**
' Washington, March 21, 1824, Bryan MSS.
'Washington, April 28, 1824, Bryan MSS.
* Roanoke, Aug. 25, 1823, Dr. R. B. Carmichael MSS.
VOL. n. — ^34
530 John Randolph of Roanoke
Another letter prescribed a complete course of reading
for his niece, which evidences in the most striking manner
how familiar he was with the best books of the past. "I
wish, " he says, among other things, "I had the leisure to
complete an Index Expurgatoritis, since I deem it more
important, if possible, to point out those to be shunned
than such as are worthy of perusal. " '
Nor did Randolph withhold from Elizabeth his tistial
arraignment of Virginian barbarisms of speech. After
quoting some of them such as "mar" and **har'* for
**mare" and "hare," he said:
** Some ttunble over the other side of the steed and 'ginerally*
say 'Sinate* etc. Perhaps the first man in Virginia, if not in
the Union, [John Marshall] pronounces irritate, error and ur-
gent as if the two first (each having its distinct sound) were
spelt like the last with an *u.' The same great man talks of
'independunce, ' the 'firmamunt * etc. , as if it were not as easy to
say 'able,' short as *ubble."**
Some of the letters were written while Randolph was
abroad. One of these contains a reference to a stage-
coach accident, which had befallen him at Stoney Strat-
ford, and which had fractured one of his shoulder blades
and two of his ribs. "I am returning a poor cripple,
nearly helpless, to my native land, ** ^ he said. One letter,
received by Elizabeth, contained various extracts from a
letter^ which had been written to Randolph by Sir Grey
Skipwith, Bart., the son of Sir Pe)rton Skipwith, of Prest-
would, and the brother of St. George Tucker's second
wife, who was then residing at Alvestone, England, and
who was at the time, or recently had been, the father of i8
children, whom Randolph calls off, one by one, by name
'Washington, Jan. 19, 1822, Bryan MSS.
•Washington, Jan. 30, 1822.
) At sea, Ship Cortes, Dec. 2, 1824, Bryan MSS.
4 Roanoke, Oct. 23, 1823, Dr. R. B. Cajmichad MSS.
Randolph as a Man 531
in another letter to Elizabeth. " Among the extracts, is
one in which Sir Grey said dolefully that he was sorry to
add that his very prolific wife was again in a way to add
to their already numerous family. It would be curious,
to know what the wife of the good Baronet might have
said at times about her philo-progenitive husband.
Seven years later, when Randolph was in London, he
sent to Elizabeth extracts from another letter written to
him by Sir Grey, in which Sir Grey informed him that it
had pleased God to deprive him of his dear and excellent
wife.'
Many of the letters are distinguished by the richest
strains of sentiment or reflection :
** 'Hadst thou but lived and lived to love me,' " he quoted
on one occasion. "Do you remember the lines of which this
is the burthen, found in BothweU's pocket-book after his
death. He is the masterpiece of all that author's characters
and it was necessary to kill him in the outset. He who can
open that pocket-book without feeling his heart soften is fit for
a public executioner."
And then, with one of his sudden transitions, he adds :
"And now let me just remind you that *on yesterday' is
not good English. Yesterday is an adverb and is not
governed by any preposition. "^
**You are right my dear," he wrote several months later,
** the love ofsuch a mother and sister as ours is a strong bond of
union between us. I have felt, and shall always feel, its full
force; but I would, if possible, superadd other ties. I would,
for instance, wish so to conduct myself in whatever station in
life it may please God to place me as to secure your esteem, and
so to deport myself as to deserve your love. Rely upon it that
you have very little acquaintance with men when you suppose
' Dec. 9, 1822, Id.
* London, Nov. 14, 1830.
' Roanoke, Nov. 20, 1825, Bryan MSS.
532 John Randolph of Roanoke
that they lose in the world the recollections of their youth;
that they, too, do not look back on the joys of their childhood
with melancholy, or that the tide of life in man as well as
woman is not stained with past and present tears and cares."'
In 1828, Elizabeth was residing in the country near
Fredericksburg, and this fact was responsible for these
reminiscences :
* * My dear child : I beg pardon of the Wilderness a thousand
times. I have no doubt that it is a most respectable desert,
with a charming little oasis inhabited by very good sort of
people, quite different from the wandering Barbarians around
them. To say the truth, I was a little out of temper with the
aforesaid desert because it had subjected me more than
once to disappointment in regard to you. At Fredericksburg,
you seem to be within my reach : but there I can't get at you.
I am too much of a wild man of the woods myself to take upon
me airs over my fellow-savages. And I shall be willing here-
after to rank your wilderness along with the far-famed forest of
Arden. By the way, this is not saying much for it. I traveled
two weary days* journey through the Ardennes in 1826. Figure
for yourself a forest of beech and alder saplings intersected
by a thousand cart tracks, the soil, if soil it might be called,
strongly resembling the Stafford Hills of Virginia, and where,
instead of spreading oaks or beech, under which I hoped to find
Angelica asleep by a crystal stream, we had much ado to find
a drop of water for our sorry cattle, who painfully drew us
through the ruts of a narrow, hollow way, deeply worn in the
tmeven ground, and sheltered from ever5rthing but the sun
(In August) by a thicket of brushwood, through which, every
now and then, peeped the sooty figure of a charcoal burner.
I did not expect to meet with Rosalind or Orlando, because I
had corrected a former misapprehension in regard to the scene
of that enchanting drama. Shakespeare, it seems, so say the
critics, had in his eye the forest of Arden in his native Warwick-
shire, and a delightful forest it would be, if there were fewer
towns and villages and more trees. As it is, however, it is
« Feb. 12, 1826, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 533
what is called in England a woody tract, and the woodmen of
Arden meet there annually, and contend for prizes in archery
(a silver arrow or bugle); excited by the smiles of all the 'Beauty
and Fashion' of the neighboring country.
**Now I, who have as little taste for 'Fashion and Etiquette*
as yoiirself, or any hamadryad of your favourite wilderness,
have nevertheless so much for Beauty that I have found a
meeting of the woodmen of Arden *go off,* as the phrase is, very
well. Thank God, my praepositus (that is law Latin) came
from Warwickshire, and thank God! again that his ancestors
were from Kent, unconquered Kent, whose motto is Invicta,
and whose post of right is the centre and van of the armed
force of England.
"There is an old song about the *men of Kent,* to which a
stanza was added for the glory of Wolfe (himself a Kentish
man) that used to be sung in our family, who in the old times
hailed from Kent. I recollect every part of it. By the way,
every Kentish man is not a *man of Kent* ; this justly proved
title being confined to a certain district of the county :
** 'When Harold was invaded, and, falling, lost his crown.
And Norman William waded thro* blood into a throne,
The counties round with fear profound
Beheld their sad condition.
Laid down their arms, received his terms;
Brave Kent made no submission.
Then let us sing the men of Kent, etc., etc.*
After this, you may suppose the hops and the beer and the
cherries there and the Church of Canterbtiry figure as large as
life.
* *Now don't go and expose my old man's prattle to any eye or
ear but your own on pain of finding me hereafter as silent as
the grave.
*'Did I or did I not tell you that my godson [John Randolph
Bryan] spent two or three days in Fredericksburg last autimm
waiting for the stage that was to convey him to Roanoke, and
that he was much struck with the beauty of the Fredericksburg
ladies, whom he saw at church ?
534 John Randolph of Roanoke
* * My bands are cramped, as you perceive. I am much better.
Yesterday, when all the world went to worship the Great King,
I rode to Georgetown, and had the pleasure of passing the
morning with two very amiable ladies, one of them a widow,
the other a married woman."*
And what feet would not have been tempted to tread the
fair meads of literature by such a seductive letter as this :
** By the way, I sent you a translation, for which at school I
should have been reproved, if not chastised, but, as I never
incurred either disgrace (about my book), so I will make
amends now by a frank confession of my fault. I gave neither
the literal sense nor the aroma, if I may say so, of the passage,
but a paraphrase. I wish you knew as much Latin ^ I do at
the least, and a great deal more Greek. And why should you
not understand them as well as Lady Jane Grey or Queen
Elizabeth, your namesake, or Maria Theresa, who, when she
harangued in that tongue (which is in general use also in
Poland), the states of Hungary received the memorable reply
from the whole body; the action being suited to the word;
swords leaping from their scabbards. 'Moriamur pro nostro
regCy Maria Theresa, * We will die for our King, Maria Theresa.
In Hungary, there can be no queen. She is king. There
is a gallant Salique law for you. But to return to Virgil, and
I will copy the passage which describes Dido, unhappy Dido,
with a felicity approaching Shakespeare. On such a night as
this stood Dido with a willow in her hand upon the wild sea
banks, and waved her love to come again to Carthage. Sam
Johnson never said a better thing, and not often so true a one,
as that the Romans would never have endured Virgil's treat-
ment of her, if she had not been a Carthaginian. Now for the
passage, to which you are indebted to a romping match be-
tween my brother Richard and myself in school time; for which
I was tasked thirty lines beginning:
** *At regina gravi jamdudum saucia cura
Vulnus alit venis et caeco carpitur igni
> Washington, Jan. 2, 1828, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 535
Mtilta Viri Virtus animo multusque recursat
Gentis honos. Haerent infixi pectore vultus
Verbaque: nee placidam membris dat cura qtiietem.'
"When I began, I intended only to have written as much as
the first paragraph on the other page contains, but you and
Dido are a couple of seducing sluts, and the enclosed note,
which you must return, will show that there is another en-
chantress against whom I mtist guard my 'liver.' But to re-
turn to the pious iEneas, the Sir Charles Grandison of the
Ancients and Prince of Coxcombs, or rather to his victim. His
face and words stuck immovably (fixed) in her breast. It is at
the beginning of the fourth book and your brother will read it
to you. *Haerei lateri lethalis arundo.' The deadly arrow
rankles in his side; the word used by Virgil means to convey
the idea of sticking like a barbed arrow, not to be drawn out,
deeply fixed."*
A fit companion-piece for this last letter is another
which Randolph wrote a few days later to his niece :
"Why does Milton write steep Atlantic stream? Because
poetry is not prose; altho' prose is often poetry, and of the
highest order. Dr. Johnson's folio dictionary is at your hand
and may, perhaps, help you to solve the meaning. But I will
venture.
"The stream is 'steep,' not shelving, but perpendicular,
down deeper than plummet ever sounded. But, as poetry
affects us by exciting images and thoughts in us, as one in-
strument, though not struck, responds in unison to another,
it may be because the descent of 'the gilded car of day' is
(apparently) 'steep,' precipitated, plunging right down. This
substitution is well understood by rhetoricians as well as poets.
"Virgil writes:
" 'i4tt/ conjurato descendens que Dacus ab Istro.*
Now, although you are, I believe, no Latin scholar; yet you are
better able to comprehend me than thotisands that are, or are
» Jan. 19, 1828, Bryan MSS.
536 John Randolph of Roanoke
thought to be such. I will write over each Latin word the
English one, premising that the case is fixed by the termination;
*us* being nominative, and *o* ablative. Here you see the
whole Danube (i.e., the vast country watered by it). A tame
imagination would have written out conjuratus descendens que
Dacus ab Istro, making the Dacian people only the conspirator.
The que at the end of the present participle descendens is
for metre and euphony only, altho' it means *and.*"*
In the following letter, his romantic love for his niece
reaches its acme :
** My dear Child. My late apparent rashness, I am over-
joyed to see, has not wounded you. That it has made you
uneasy, I regret, but why was I so moved; because I love you
more than worlds. I am the man in the book with one little
ewe lamb : but I am not the man tamely to see the wolf carry it
away. I will resist even unto blood. My fate was in your
hands. When you come to know my history, you will see what
it is that makes me what the world would call desperate.
Desperation is the fruit of guilt, of remorse. It is for the
unjust. It is for the wretched who had rather steal than work.
It is for the Harrels (see Cecilia) who prefer hell at home and
in their own bosoms to the foregoing of dress, and shew, and
parties, and an equipage, when their fortune will not afford a
wheelbarrow."^
The range of the letters, written by Randolph to his
niece, is sufficiently wide to give us a sharpened insight
even into his most intimate personal habits.
** What you say about modesty charms me," he once wrote
to her. '* It is what even a man of delicacy should endeavor to
bring himself to. Many men think themselves absolved (and
some ladies, too, I fear), when in private, from observances
which no well-regulated mind will ever depart from; as some
only keep clean and nice those garments and such parts of their
' Feb. I, 1828, Bryan MSS.
» Mar. 30, 1828, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 537
persons as are exposed to view. I remember, when I was a
boy, that I never practiced any of those slovenly tricks ; I never
put on clean stockings on unwashed feet, as I have seen my
comrades do; nor thought myself at liberty, because I was
unobserved, to dispense in word or deed with any of the
decencies that cover, as with a garment, our naked and
shuddering humanity, and distinguish us from Hottentots and
brutes."*
In some of the letters, there are religious observations,
which bespeak a deeper undercurrent of religious feeling,
after all, than anything that we find in the letters that he
wrote during his period of religious hysteria ; but of these
letters, as well as of his religious manifestations generally,
we shall have something to say a little later on.
Among the letters written by Randolph to his niece and
her husband, was one containing this advice which might
be profitably taken to heart by a Virginian at the present
day.
** Plant fruit and forest trees. Plant (out of sight) all
unsightly objects such as offices, etc. ; fence your house from
the East wind by evergreens faced with deciduous trees and
shrubs. Don't let it stand flaming d la Virginienne, as if it
stood for the County. The nakedness and desolation of our
country seats, especially on the tidewaters, is hideous and
detestable."*
In another letter, written a few weeks later to John
Randolph Bryan, after giving him a good deal of the old-
fashioned advice about economy and kindred virtues
which has rarely been known to find lodgment anywhere
short of the caverns of the moon, Randolph promised him
some acorns **of an oak from Turkey," and also a few
English acorns and various edible nuts of one kind or
another. This letter also bears testimony to the diflficul-
' Washington, Jan. 21, 1828, Bryan MSS.
« London, Nov. 14, 1830, Bryan MSS.
538 John Randolph of Roanoke
ties, with which the owner of a country seat in Virginia, in
Randolph's time, far removed from the shops and skilful
mechanics of urban centers, and dependent for its proper
care upon slipshod negro labor, had to contend.
**The parsimony I preach up," Randolph said, "does not
extend to the exclusion of comforts. I hope never to see a
fireplace in your house without shovel and tongs and fender,
nor with broken windows. When I was on a visit to poor B.,
he had 8 or lo sponging visitors and their horses, and it was
with difficulty that I could get a basin or towel. Even the most
necessary article in a bed chamber was missing. I do not
mean the bed, for there was one, although most uncomfortable;
no, furnish your rooms well, however plainly. It is a first
expense for the whole of your life. Plate and china and glass
you will have no occasion to buy."*
Poor B.! It is well that Randolph had the habit of
amputating proper names.
After the death of Randolph, his niece, between the
injurious reflections made by him in his will, executed in
1 82 1, upon the integrity of her grandfather Tucker, and
the fact that the great bulk of his estate was by his will,
executed in 1832, given to her son, John C. Bryan, was
placed in a very delicate and trying situation; especially
as it was said by one of Randolph's overseers that, in
addition to the wills, executed by Randolph, that had been
brought to light after his death, he had made another, in
which, after bequeathing the sum of $50,000.00 to John
C. Bryan, he had left the residue of his property to his
natural heirs. Just what her feelings were, however, we
are at no loss to know, because free expression was given
to them by her in several letters to her step-grandmother
which are still extant, and go far to confirm the high opinion
which Randolph entertained of her mind and character.
These letters show that not only Randolph's brothers,
* London, Dec. 28, 1830, Bryan MSB.
Randolph as a Man 539
but his brother-in-law, Judge Coalter, felt that, whatever
disposition might be made of the will of 1832, that of 1821,
with its aspersions on the honor of St. George Tucker,
should not be allowed to stand. Indeed, in a memoran-
dum which accompanied one of them, Mrs. Bryan tells
Mrs. Tucker that her father had declared that the will of
1 82 1 contained a slander on his father-in-law that should
not go on record tmcontested while his head was warm. '
In a letter, subsequent to the date of this memorandum,
Mrs. Bryan also quotes her Uncle Beverley as saying :
**To both (St. George Tucker and John Randolph) we owe
it to show that the charge was false, and known to him (Ran-
dolph) to be so, and to excuse the falsehood by proving his
derangement. Leigh will relinquish all claim under the first
will; neoerthdess we must fight against it for the honor of the
dead. About the last (making Jack his heir) we will have no
controversy."*
If Mrs. Bryan failed at all in living up to all the require-
ments of her painful situation, it was, perhaps, in allowing
herself to be pushed, by the necessities of the case into
emphasizing just a little too strongly what she beheved to
be the mental irresponsibility of her uncle. In her first
letter to Mrs. St. George Tucker, to whom she was ten-
derly attached, she says :
**You will have seen from the papers somewhat of Uncle
Randolph's will; and no doubt wish to know more about it, as
Jack is his heir under one will. I can only say that I firmly
believe that he was not for years before his death capable of
making a will. I, therefore, hope that both wills may be con-
tested and set aside. I dislike above all things that my child
should be heir to so much property, especially to the loss of his
uncles, who are nearer by right of blood, and have proved
their worthiness, whereas he may or may not be as much so as
'Aug. 15, 1833, Bryan MSS.
» Sept. 19, 1833, Bryan MSS.
540 John Randolph of Roanoke
they are. Papa has enjoined silence on us about this matter,
but to you I always speak freely. I know that my unde was
not himself (on the subject of property especially) for years.
As I hear more on the subject, you shall be informed of it.
In a late affectionate letter from Uncle B. (who with his family
are at Roanoke), he tells me that Mr. Wm Leigh has partly
resolved to contest the last will in behalf of the slaves, who are
emancipated by the first, but he does not mean to advance his
claim to the property left him and his son by that same will.
I do not know how it may go. I trust that the Great Ruler of
Events will decide the matter aright. I should wish myself for
the freeing of the slaves and the division of the property among
the natural heirs, with a handsome provision for Mr. Leigh,
whose long and tried friendship and services merit a return.
His circumstances would make it acceptable. So Jack does
not get all I do not much care about it. If I could see you, I
could tell you more. This is all that I will put on paper, and
this is in confidence."*
In a postscript to this letter, Mrs. Bryan further says:
'*I dread as much as possible the last one (the will of 1832)
and had rather (almost if not quite) give up my darling
to his Maker than have him live to experience such a trial
and temptation. It is dreadful to think of." In the
memorandum, to which we have referred, after recalling
what her father had said about the will, she continues in
these words :
** So say we all. All feel as one man. All wish both wills to
be set aside, and I think it probable that the law will do it. I
pray God to let the decision be according to the truth. My
own belief is that Uncle Randolph did wish his slaves emanci-
pated, and Mr. Leigh handsomely rewarded for his tried friend-
ship. I, moreover, believe that he intended to provide for
Uncle B, but disease acting on his excitable temperament kept
him always more or less mad, and property was the main
chord of his insanity. Death surprised him! If I had not
' Eagle Point, Aug. 15, 1833, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 541
always thought him mad, I could not have loved him, and
would not have overlooked, as I did, his disrespect to my dear
grandfather. If I did not now believe him to have been mad,
I could not respect his memory. I admired his talents, loved
him from the tie of blood and because he loved me, and pitied
him because he was sick and wretched, and sought my sym-
pathy. I never expected /or an instant to be the better for his
being a rich man. I have always felt independent of him,
and he knew it,**
Another letter from Mrs. Bryan to Mrs. Tucker dis-
closes the fact that the writer never knew until after the
death of her uncle that he had eVer assailed the integrity
of her grandfather. She had supposed, she said, that the
coolness, which had sprung up between them, had been
due to Randolph's prejudice against second marriages
and stepmothers.
** Not that I ever heard him say even a slighting word of you
but once," she hastens to add, **and then he said: 'Your
grandmother, as you call her* (having occasion to mention
you). I raised my finger wamingly, and looked at him, and
said: 'And well may I call her so.* He bowed and went on
with his story.*'*
In this same letter, she declares that she regarded the
charges in the will of 1821 "as the act of a madman, '* and
she added that she had never thought of Randolph but
as insane on many subjects since she * ' first had very per-
sonal intercourse with him,** which was, she thought, in
1816. In this letter, too, Mrs. Bryan declares that Ran-
dolph always spoke of her father to her **in the most
exalted and respectful terms,** and never said one dis-
respectful word to her about her grandfather.
"On the contrary,*' she said, **in the latter years of my dear
parent's life, he several times inquired kindly about him, and
« Eagle Point, Sept. 19, 1833, Bryan MSB.
542 John Randolph of Roanoke
sent him his good wishes most cordially. When I mentioned
his illness and death, in reply he said : 'Your accounts are most
distressing; I cannot reason away my feelings on the subject,
though life has long been to him little but a burden. It is a
mercy to God that he has had such a comforter as Mrs. Tucker.'
I quote from memory, but the expressions are, I believe.
verbatim, I tell you this to clear myself in your eyes. I would
not for the world that you should think me capable of loving
and respecting a man who I knew to be the slanderer of my
grandfather.'*'
Bitter as the enmities of Randolph were, evidence can
readily be brought forward to show that, long before his
end, his feelings towards every one of the individuals who
had been the subjects of them — Jefferson, Madison, Wm.
B. Giles, Samuel Smith. John Quincy Adams, and St.
George Tucker — ^had imdergone a more or less softening
change. Josiah Quincy, Jr., says that his father, Josiah
Quincy, was the only friend that Randolph ever had with
whom he did not quarrel first or last'; and Sawyer tells us
that Randolph died almost friendless.^ Nothing cotdd
be further from the truth than either statement, though
the first certainly, and the second possibly, was made
without malice. Throughout his life, Randolph was never
without a circle of devoted friends, and, if he did not have
as many at the end of his life as he had had in its earlier
stages, that was simply the penalty which we all pay for
living on after crossing over the ridge which separates the
watershed of the River of Life from the watershed of the
River of Death. When he wrote to his sister that no man
ever poured out his whole soul both in friendship and love
more freely than her poor old brother had done in his early
days, he had no little reason for saying what he did, and
he was simply reaping the just rewards of his constancy as
' Eagle Point, Sept. 19, 1833, Bryan MSS,
« Life of Quincy f 266.
*P. 124.
Randolph as a Man 543
a friend when he found himself in a position to declare,
some 14 years later: **What an ill-starred wretch have I
been through life — a not tmeventful life — ^and yet how
truly blest have I been in my friends; not one, no not one
has ever betrayed me whom I have admitted into my
sanctum sanctorum,*'^ Sawyer says that the tenure of
Randolph's friendship was too frail to render it sincere or
ardent. * This statement too is entirely destitute of found-
ation. When W. J. Barksdale, who knew Randolph
intimately, was asked in the Randolph will litigation
whether it was not a trait of Randolph's character to be
very variable in his friendships, he answered promptly:
' 'According to my observation, not at all so. " ^ The truth
is that we cannot recall an instance in which Randolph
ever gave his friendship and withdrew it, when sane, for
reasons other than such as would be recognized by any
fair-minded individual as good reasons for withdrawing it.
He did not dull his palm with the entertainment of any
new-fledged comrade, for he was too reserved to confer his
confidence upon anyone hastily ; but, friendship once given,
its tie, at any rate imtil the irresponsibility of his latter
years set in, was for him as indissoluble as the marriage
tie usually was in Virginia.
**I never hazarded the wounding of a friend but to serve
that friend," ... he once wrote to his niece. ** Banister,
Bryan — they were my friends — Rutledge he is (or was) my
friend. Never did I wound either of them; nor Wm. Leigh,
nor will I ever. The people are my friends.'*^
Banister and Rutledge have already been introduced
to the reader. When Randolph parted with Rutledge in
' The Hague, Aug. 8, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 271.
' P. 124.
' Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor. Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
< Mar. 30, 1828, Bryan MSS.
544 John Randolph of Roanoke
1796, he did not meet him again for a long stretch of years.
In mentioning some of his friends to Dr. Brockenbrough,
Randolph once said:
** Bryan, Benton, Rutledge — ^let me not forget him whom I
knew before either of the others, although for the last 30 years
we have met but once. The last letter that I received on my
departure from Washington was from him. In the late elec-
tion, he was the warm supporter of General Jackson, whom he
personally knew and esteems, and I confess that the testimony
of one whom I have known intimately for more than six and
thirty years to be sans peur et sans reproche, and who is an
observer and an excellent judge of mankind, weighs, as it
ought to weigh, with me in favor of the veteran."*
Long suspended, as personal intercourse between Ran-
dolph and Rutledge was, Rutledge's image never grew
faint in Randolph's memory. Of this we need no better
proof than the following letter, written after Rutledge's
return to the United States from a foreign excursion :
*' My dear Rutledge: When I got home from Richmond,
a fortnight ago. Dr. Dudley informed me that he had, that
very morning, sent letters for me to that place by my wagon —
*one from Rutledge.* (I come a different road until within a
few miles of my own house.) At length, *the heavy rolling
wain* has returned — a safer, and ofttimes a swifter, conveyance
than the Post — ^and I have the pleasure to read your letter
written on my birthday. I hope you will always celebrate
it in the same way, and, as probably you never knew that
important fact, or have forgotten it, I must inform you that it
falls just two days before that of our sometime king, on the
anniversary of whose nativity you tell me you had proposed to
set out, or, as it is more elegantly expressed in our Doric idiom,
Ho start' for the good old thirteen United States. I am too
unwell and too much fatigued to say much more than to
« The Hague, Aug. 8, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 271.
Randolph as a Man 545
express my disappointment at not seeing you on your Atlantic
Pilgrimage. I knew that I did not lie in your route, and, altho'
I had no right to expect such a deflection from your line of
march, yet, somehow or other, joining an expression of one
of your letters and my own wishes together, I made up a sort of
not very confident hope of seeing you in my solitary cabin —
'bag [and] baggage' as you say. I acknowledge that my con-
struction of your language was strained, but, when once we
have set our hearts upon anjrthing, 'trifles light as air' serve our
piupose as well as 'holy writ.' And so you have been given
back like another Orpheus by the infernal regions — but with-
out leaving your Etirydice behind you. I suspect you cast no
'longing, lingering look behind.' Pray tell me whether your
Ixions of the West (whom I take to be true 'crackers') stopped
their wheels, as you passed; or Tantalus forgot his thirst, and
put by the untasted whiskey.
"You misapprehend me, or, what is more probable, I have
expressed myself very incorrectly, if you impute to me the
opinion that Burke, the great master of political philosophy,
has been the model of our 4th of July orators and spouters in
and out of Congress. I consider the style of Burke to be the
most flexible that can be imagined, and nothing can be stiffer,
not even our Russian Envoy, than the style we both condemn.
But read a page of Fisher Ames, or a line of one of Quincy's
speeches, and forget Burke, if you can. Sometimes, you have
a mere echo, and, at all times, a wretched imitation. Of
Curran, the ape of Grattan (who occasionally had Burke in his
eye too) and of Phillips (the ape of Curran) whom we ape, I
have already (I think) expressed my opinion. Grattan goes to
the very farthest verge of propriety, and often oversteps the
modesty of nature, but, if he had never said anjrthing but what
he delivered on the Irish propositions, he would stand with me
in the foremost rank of orators. Speaking of the interdiction
of the Commerce of Ireland beyond the Cape of Good Hope
and Cape Horn he said — 'It resembled a judgment of God
rather than an act of legislature, whether measured by extent
of space or infinity of duration — ^and had nothing
human about it except its presumption!* This is not what
Watts and His disciples call reasoning — but it is above it. No,
VOL. u. — 35
546 John Randolph of Roanoke
my dear Rutledge, if I am enthxisiastic in anything, it is in
admiration of Burke.
**Had I got your letter in time, I would have shot you fly-
ing somewhere between Fincastle and Winchester; (our Win-
chester). You must be so heavy on the wing that I could hit
you as easily as a woodcock. I proposed going to our Sulphur
Springs for a diseased liver, and it would have been killing
two birds at once.
"Let me know your future movements, and, perhaps, I may
contrive a meeting; when you will see an old, withered, weather-
beaten, shrivelled creature, and look in vain for him you once
knew. My best wishes attend Mrs. R. and your sister. Your
children ought to think of me as one whom they have long
known. Remember me to Middleton and his accomplished
wife, and believe me, in the truest sense of the word,
Your Friend,
J. R. of Roanoke."'
I our rnenc
(I
Other early friends of Randolph were John Thompson
and his brother, William Thompson. John Thompson
was a young man of great promise, and created consider-
able stir in the last years of the i8th century by his news-
paper publications on political topics, signed ''Gracchus, "
**Cassius,*' and **Curtius"; and especially by a letter
which he addressed to John Marshall, when he was a Fed-
eralist candidate for Congress in the Richmond District.
To him it was that Randolph referred somewhat grandi-
osely in the debate on Gregg's Resolution as **the author
of the immortal letters of Curtius. *' However, thie thread
of Thompson's life was slit too early by sour Atropos for
anyone to say safely just what his future would have been.
At any rate, even before Randolph became a member of
Congress, this friend had the foresight to descry the fame
that awaited him. Writing to William Thompson from
Europe some months before the first election of Randolph
to the House, he said : * * Our friend John Randolph offers
« So, Lit. Mess. (Nov. 1856), pp. 380-382.
Randolph as a Man 547
for Congress, and will probably be elected. He is a bril-
liant and noble young man. He will be an object of
admiration and terror to the enemies of liberty. " *
William Thompson was hardly less talented than his
brother, but he was one of those clever, wayward, and
convivial young men, so common in the social and political
life of his time, who could never make any steady progress
in the world because liquor was forever tripping up their
heels. In 1798, he and Randolph walked over to the
Virginia Moimtains to visit Richard Kidder Meade, one
of Randolph's relations; commencing their journey at
Bizarre, with no impedimenta except a small bundle at the
end of the cane carried by each. ^ Later, they returned to
Bizarre in fine health and spirits, and Thompson went
abroad, wandered over the face of Germany, studied
medicine, and then abandoned it for the study of the law,
and finally returned to Virginia. ^ A dissipated vagabond,
he was rapidly squandering all his opportunities and sink-
ing into the position of an irreclaimable outcast, when
Randolph extended his hand to him, placed him imder
shelter at Bizarre, endeavored by every means in his
power to rehabilitate him in the respect of others and his
own self-respect, and expended upon him a measure of com-
mingled patience and affection which did no little honor
to the amiable side of his own character. Writing from
Bizarre to Randolph on one occasion, Thompson says:
** My Dear Brother : Since you left us, I have been deeply
engaged in what you advised. I have reviewed the Roman
and Grecian history; I have done more; I have reviewed my
own. Believe me, Jack, that I am less calculated for society
than almost any man in existence. I am not perhaps a vain
fool, but I have too much vanity, and I am too susceptible
of flattery. I have that fluency which will attract attention
'Garland, v. i, 73.
«7Wa., 72.
548 John Randolph of Roanoke
and receive applause from an unthinking multitude. Content
with my superiority, I should be too indolent to acquire real,
useful knowledge. I am stimulated by gratitude, by friendship
and by love to make exertions now. I feel confident that you
will view my foibles with a lenient eye; that you will see me
prosper and in my progress be delighted."*
Was it with Judith that he was in love? The reader
may make his own guess as we proceed. Of the relations
between the two, while Thompson was at Bizarre, we have
no information apart from Thompson and Randolph
themselves, except a letter from Nancy Randolph to Mrs.
Creed Taylor, in which she says that the fact that Thomp-
son and Judith and "the girls" (probably the daughters
of Mrs. Guilford Dudley) were out taking a walk had
afforded her an opportunity to write to her friend. ^ The
next time that Thompson swims into our ken is in an
indignant and eloquent letter to Randolph in which he
castigates with no little rhetorical vigor the injustice to
which Randolph had been subjected in the matter of the
assault made upon him at the play-house by Capt.
McKnight and Lieut. Reynolds. ^
While Thompson was at Bizarre, and Randolph was
away from it, engaged with his Congressional duties, a
regular correspondence was kept up between them. The
following letter was written by Randolph from Philadel-
phia, when Congress was sitting in that"city, in reply to
one which he had received from Thompson :
** Above all, it [Thompson's letter] put my mind at ease upon
a subject which has been productive of considerable concern.
I mean your change of residence, which, as you will find by
my last, I understood you had removed to Chinquepin Church.
Not knowing your reasons for leaving Bizarre, I could not
< Garland, v. i, 73.
• Creed Taylor MSS.
> Garland, v. i, 162.
Randolph as a Man 549
combat [them]. Great, however, was my surprise and pleas-
ure to receive a letter from Judy [Mrs. Richard Randolph] and
yourself; both of which relieved my anxiety upon this head. I
am, moreover, charmed, my friend, that you are resolutely
bent upon study, and have made some progress therein. Let
me conjure you to adhere inflexibilyto this rational pursuit.
Your destiny is in your own hands. Regular employment is of
all medicines the most effectual for a wounded mind. If the
sympathy of a friend, who loves you, because you are amiable
and unfortunate; because you are the representative of that
person [John Thompson] who held the first place in his heart,
and the first rank in the intellectual order; if my uniform
friendship, my dear Thompson, could heal the wounds of your
•heart, never should it know a pang. Your situation is of all
others the one most eminently calculated to repair, so far as it
is possible, the ills which you have sustained. An amiable
woman, who regards you as a brother, who shares your griefs,
and will administer as far as she can to your consolation . . .
such a woman is under the same roof with you. Cultivate a
familiarity with her; each day will give you new and
unexpected proof of the strength of her mind, and the extent of
her information. Books you have at command; your retire-
ment is unbroken. Such a situation is, in my opinion, the best
calculated for a young man (under any circumstances) who will
study; or even for one who is determined to be indolent.
Female society, in my eye, is an indispensable requisite in
forming the manly character. That which is offered to you is
not to be paralleled, perhaps, in the world. You call on me,
my friend, for advice. You bid me regard your foibles with a
lenient eye; you anticipate the joy which I shall derive from
your success. I will not permit myself to doubt of it. You
shall succeed — you must. You have it in your power. Exer-
tion only is necessary. You owe it to the memory of our
departed brother, to yourself, to me, to your country, to
humanity! Apprised that you have foibles to eradicate, the
work is more than half accomplished. I will point them out
with a friendly yet lenient hand. You will not shrink from the
probe, knowing that, in communicating present pain, your
ultimate cure and safety is the object of the friendly operator.
550 John Randolph of Roanoke
If I supposed myself capable of inflicting intentional and wan-
ton pain upon your feelings, I should shrink with abhorrence
from myself. In the course of my strictures, I may, perhaps,
appear abrupt. I am now pressed for time.
** Self-examination, when cool and impartial, is the best of all
correctives. It is a general and trite observation that man
knows his fellows better than himself. This is too true; but it
depends upon every individual to exhibit, in himself, a refuta-
tion of this received maxim. Retirement and virtuous society
fit the mind for this task.
** Among your foibles, I have principally observed tmsteadi-
ness; a precipitate decision, and the want of mature reflection,
generally. It would be uncandid to determine your character
by these traits, which originate, perhaps, [in], or are, at least,
heightened by, the uneasiness which preys upon your mind;
which renders you more than usually restless. Endeavor, my
friend, to act less upon momentary impulse; pause, reflect;
think much and speak little; form a steadiness of demeanor,
and, having once resolved, persevere. Read, but do not
devour, books. Compare your information; digest it. In
short, according to the old proverb, 'Make haste slowly.'
There is one point upon which I must enjoin you to beware.
You appeared restless, when I saw you, to change your prop-
erty. Let things stand as they are a little. Facilis descensus,
sed revocare gradum, hoc opus, (Excuse, I beseech you, this piti-
ful display of learning.)
** The Due de la Rochefoucault — who, by the by, is a bad
moral preceptor — has, among others, this very excellent
maxim : * We are never made so ridiculous by the qualities we
possess as by those which we affect to have.' I never knew a
man who would not profit of this observation. To preserve
your own esteem, merit it. I have no fear that you will ever
render yourself unworthy of its greatest good. Yet, a man who
is so unfortunate as to lose his own good opinion, is wrong to
despair. It may be retrieved. He ought to set about it
inmiediately, as the only reparation which he can make to
himself or society. The ill opinion of mankind is often mis-
placed; but our own of ourselves never,
** Pardon, my dear brother, this pedantic and didactic letter.
Randolph as a Man 55i
Its sententiousness is intolerable, yet it was almost unavoid-
able. I had written till my fingers were cramped. The hour
of closing the mail approached, and I was obliged to throw my
sentiments into the offensive form of dogmas. That I, who
abound in foibles, and, to speak truth, vices — ^that I should
pretend to dogmatize, may appear to many arrogant indeed.
Yet, let them recollect that we are all frail, and should sustain
each other; and that the truth of a precept is not determined
by the practice of him who promulges it. Go on, my dear
Thompson, and prosper. I regret that I am debarred the
pleasure of sharing your literary labors, and of that interchange
of sentiment which constitutes one of the chief sources of my
enjoyment. To our amiable sister — for such she considers
herself with respect to you — I commit you, confident that your
own exertion, aided by her society, will form you such as your
friend will rejoice to behold you. Write to him frequently,
I beseech you; cheer his solitary and miserable existence with
the well known characters of friendship. Adieu, my dear
brother."^
To this letter Thompson replied in the following terms :
** Dear Jack, : I am not ceremonious. I feel a conviction
that your silence does not proceed from a want of regard, but
from a cause more important to the world, to yourself, and, if
possible, more distressing to me than the loss of that place in
your heart, on which depends my future prosperity. I had
fondly hoped that the change of scene, and the novelty of
business, would have dissipated that melancholy which over-
hung you. To see my friend return happy and well, was the
only wish of my heart.
**To the man, who is not devoted to unnatural dissipations, a
great city has no charms; it awakens the most painful sen-
sations in the breast of the philanthropist and patriot. It is
disgusting to behold such a mass of vice, and all its attendant
deformities, cherished in the bosom of an enlightened country.
Prostitutions of body, and still greater prostitution of mind
excite our pity and hatred. The political life has not those
* Phila., Dec. 31, 1800, Garland, v. i, 166.
552 John Randolph of Roanoke
attractions to the virtuous which it once had, and which it
ought still to have in this country. The spirit of party has
extinguished the spirit of Uberty. The enlightened orator
must be shocked at the willing stupidity of his auditors. Our
exertions are vain and impotent. Every man is the avowed
friend of a party. Converts to reason are not to be found;
whilst converts to interest are innumerable.
* * You know I promised not to visit Richmond. I have rigidly
adhered to that. I felt a necessity of cooling down. I fore-
boded the acquirement of dissipated habits, which would haunt
me unceasingly. I saw that the patronage of the virtuous
would awaken an emulation in me to attain their perfection.
I feel confident that, if my friends bear a little longer with my
foibles, they will be corrected. I look forward with honest
pride to the day when I shall merit their regard — ^when, by my
conduct and by my principles, I shall make some retribution
for the exalted generosity which I have met with from your
family. I am not made of such stem stuff as to resist singly;
but the idea of friendship will steel my heart against tempt-
ation. Since you left me, I have been generally at home,
conscious how little I merit regard. That which I feel for your
amiable family may perhaps appear presumption, yet the
thought of losing it is stinging. ... To your sister, your most
amiable sister, I try to render myself agreeable. There is a
gentleness of manners, an uniformity of conduct, and a majesty
of virtue, which seem to render admiration presumptuous.*'*
The next letter in the correspondence is this one from
Randolph to Thompson :
*' Your letter, my dear Thompson, has communicated to my
heart a satisfaction to which it has not been at all familiar.
It has proved beyond dispute that the energies of your mind,
however neglected by yourself, or relaxed by misfortune, have
been suspended, but not impaired; and that the strength of
your understanding has not been unequal to the ordeal of mis-
fortune, of which few are calculated to bear the test- Proceed,
my friend, in the path in which you now move; justify those
« Garland, v. i, 169.
Randolph as a Man 553
Kvely hopes which I have never ceased to entertain, or to
express, of your future attainments : in the words, although not
in the sense, of the poet, let me exhort you, 'carpe diem,* The
past is not in our power to recall. The future we can neither
foresee nor control. The present alone is at our disposal : on
the use to which it is applied depends the whole of what is
estimable or amiable in htunan character."*
The moral atmosphere at Bizarre proved too highly
rarefied for Thompson ; for, in the early part of the year
1800, he went off to Petersburg, and, while there became
involved in an amour which he disclosed in a letter to
Randolph upon his return to Bizarre :
"You will be surprised, dear brother," he said, "when you are
informed that my stay in Petersburg was protracted by a
circumstance against which you warned me in a letter
sometime past. I allude to Mrs. B. . Nature has
compensated for mental imperfection by bodily perfection
in that woman. And my attachment to her corroborates a
heresy in love that desire is a powerful ingredient. Her mind is
not cultivated, her disposition is not calculated to make a man
of my enthusiasm in regard happy. Fully aware of these cir-
ctunstances, I cherished her name as dear. Thus situated, let
me ask you a question. Had you been told — nay, had you
known that this woman was the victim of infamous oppression
— that these charms had been wrested from your possession by
unfeeling relations, that your name was dear, her husband's
name odious, that on you she looked with tenderness, and on
him with hatred, what line of conduct would you adopt? . . .
I had resolved to shun her, and in truth did; but that fate,
which shows refinement in its policy, forced me to an inter-
view. . . . After several resolutions, some ridiculous (as is
usual in such cases), and one which had near proved fatal, I
fled to the asyltun of the distressed (wisely thought of), to the
spot where tender friendship [founded on ?] a character exalted
to a height, which makes the feebler of her sex look low indeed,
' Garland, 170.
554 John Randolph of Roanoke
would make me blush at my folly, and banish the idea of a
baneful passion. I will not recapitulate the wrongs of fortune,
but I fondly hope that they will plead in apology for the failings
of your friend."*
And these were the dissuasives that Randolph in his
reply brought to bear upon his friend :
"April 19, 24 year. — Today I received your letter of the 12th.
It has unravelled a mystery, for whose solution I have before
searched in vain. That you should have been in Petersburg,
sighing at the feet of the fair Mrs. B., is what I did not expect
to learn, since I supposed you all the while in Sussex. I am
now not at all surprised at your silence, during this period of
amorous intoxication; since nothing so completely unfits a man
for intercourse with any other than the object of his infatuation.
**The answer to your questions is altogether easy. In the
first place, it is not true, because it cannot be true, that this
lady was compelled to the step which she has taken. What
joYct could be brought to act upon her, which materials as hard
as wax would not resist? The truth is, if ever she felt an
attachment to you, she sacrificed it to avarice; not because
money was the end, but the means, of gratification; her vanity,
the ruling passion of every mind as imbecile as her own,
delighted in the splendor which wealth alone could procure.
At this time, the same passion, which is one of the vilest modi-
fications of self-love, would gratify itself with a little coquetry;
and, if your prudence has not exceeded that of the lady, it has
gone, I fear, greater lengths than she at first apprehended.
Nor have you, my friend, done this woman a good office, in
rendering her discontented with her lot by suffering her to
persuade herself that she is in love with you, and that oppres-
sion alone has driven her to a detested union with a detestable
brute; for such (on all hands, I believe, it is agreed) is Mr. B.
Never did I see a woman apparently better pleased with her
situation. She did not lose one pennyweight of her very com-
fortable quantity of flesh ; and, however she mi^i have hesitated
between my friend and the cash, minus the possessor, had you
'Garland, v. i, 171.
Randolph as a Man 555
been on the spot to contest your right to her very fair hand, yet
W. T., on the other side of the Atlantic, or perhaps at the
bottom of it, was no rival to the solid worth of her now caro
sposo. Perhaps, in the first instance, she might have disliked
the man, for good reasons ; and, in the second, for no reason at all,
but because her relations were very anxious for the match ; but
be assured her imagination was not sufficiently lively to induce
her to shed one tear on your account.
"You ask me, my friend, what conduct you ought to pursue;
and you talk of revenge. B. has never injured you; he has
acted like a fool, I grant, in marrying a woman whose only
inducement to the match, he must be conscious, was his
wealth; but he has committed no crime; at least he was un-
conscious of any. That the fellow should wear antlers, is no
great matter of regret, because the os frontis is certainly sub-
stantial enough to bear the weight. Yet I do not wish them
to be planted by you, for your sake, I will allow that this lady
is as fair as she is fat — ^that she is a very inviting object; yet
why should you prevent her leading a life of as much happiness
as she is susceptible oi—fruges consumere, &c. Has not her
conduct in relation to you and to her husband been such as
renders her unworthy of any man of worth? Has he not con-
ferred on you a benefit by preventing the possibility of an
alliance with a woman capable of carrying on a correspondence
with any other than her husband; and can you, who enjoy
the society of . . ., that pattern of female virtue, feel for this
woman any sentiment but contempt? So far from injuring
you, B. is the injured person, if at all. His impenetrable
stupidity has alone shielded him from sensations not the most
enviable, I imagine. Do not suppose from my style that I am
unfeeling, or have too low an estimate of the sex; on the
contrary, I am the warmest of their admirers. But silly and
depraved women, and stupid, unprincipled men, are both ob-
jects of my pity and contempt. I wish you to form a just esti-
mate of what is valuable in female character; then seek out a
proper object and marry. Intrigue will blast your reputation,
and, what is more to the purpose, your peace of mind ; it will be
a stumbling-block to you through life. An acquaintance with
loose women has incapacitated you from forming a proper
556 John Randolph of Roanoke
estimate of female worth. ... I must corigrattilate you on
your escape, and on your resolution to behold no more the
fascinating object which has caused you so much uneasiness.
I shall shortly have the pleasure of embracing you. . . .
**P.S. I have been so hurried as perhaps to betray myself
into an inaccuracy of expression. But let me suggest two ideas
to you. Has not your conduct been such as to injure a woman
for whom you have felt and professed a regard ? Is it a liberal
or disinterested passion (passion is never liberal or dis-
interested) which risks the reputation of the beloved object?
Has not her conduct in admitting your attentions rendered
her unworthy of any man but her present possessor? View
this matter in its proper light and you will never think more of
her. . . . Success attend your study of the law."*
The next letter from Thompson to Randolph was
written a few weeks after this letter from Randoph to him.
It was as follows :
**What are my emotions, dearest brother, at seeing your
horse thus far on his way to return you among us! How
eagerly do I await the appointed day! Ryland [Randolph]
has returned, and another of the children of misfortune will
seek refuge and consolation under this hospitable roof. He
has promised me by letter to be with us in a day or two. What
pleasure do I anticipate in the society of our incomparable
sister, in yours, in Ryland*s! I wish I had the vanity to
suppose I was worthy of it.
**We have been visited by the young ladies of Liberty Neck,
and by its mentor. Major Scott. I had rather have his wisdom
than Newton's or Locke's; for depend on it, he has dipped deep
in the science of mind. According to the laws of gallantry, I
should have escorted them to Amelia; but I am not fitted for
society, and the continued round of company in the Neck is
painful instead of pleasing.
*'Our sister is now asleep; she would have written but for her
being busy in finishing the children's clothes, and being
obliged to write to Mrs. Harrison. When I came in last even-
' Garland, v. i, 171.
Randolph as a Man 557
ing, I found her in the passage, a candle on the chair, sewing.
I could hardly help exclaiming, what a pattern for her sex!
The boys are well; they have both grown — the Saint particu-
larly, whose activity will astonish you. Everybody is cheerful ;
your arrival in anticipation is the cause. Farewell, dearest
brother; hasten to join us.
**W. Thompson."
"Take care how you ride Jacobin, and, if not for your own,
at least for our, sakes. Run no risks by putting him in a
carriage. We all dread the attempt.***
This letter indicates that the febrifuge had not been
without effect, and that Thompson was once more a votary
of virtue. In the meantime, however, of course, the
neighborhood gossips were saying that Thompson was
insensible neither to Judith's personal charms nor to her
admirable house-keeping, and was lingering at Bizarre
with a view to convincing her that a second marriage was
the best solace for the imtimely termination of the first.
Thompson's position became so uncomfortable that there
was nothing left for him to do but to make off from
Bizarre on his high stilts, and to write the following letter
to Randolph :
"The letter which I have transmitted by the same oppor-
tunity to that most amiable of women, our sister, com-
municates intelligence of a report, the effects of which on my
mind you will be fully aware of, from a former conversation
on the subject. Would you suppose, my dearest brother, that
the world would have dared to insinuate that my object in
remaining at Bizarre is to solicit the affections of our friend!
Time, and the apprehension that I shall be intruded on, com-
pel me to conciseness. My abode will be Ryland's until I
receive letters from you both. View the subject with imparti-
ality, enter into my feelings, for you know my heart, tell me
with candor whether I am not bound to leave the abode of
' Garland, v. i, 173.
558 John Randolph of Roanoke
innocence and friendship ? Tell me whether refined friendship
does not demand on my part a sacrifice of every prospect of
happiness, to the amiable, to the benevolent and virtuotis
woman who is wronged from her generous sympathy to the
hapless."*
This letter placed Randolph in a very embarrassing sit-
uation, but his sublimated friendship for Thompson was
equal even to its requirement.
"For the first time," he replied, **I perceive myself em-
barrassed how to comply with the requisition of friendship.
But yesterday, and I should have been unable to comprehend
the speculative possibility of that which today is reduced to
practice. If I decline the task which you have allotted me, it
is not because I am disposed to shrink from the sacred obliga-
tions which I owe to you. My silence is not the effect of un-
feeling indifference, of timid indecision, or cautious reserve.
It is the result of the firmest conviction that it is not for me
to advise you in the present crisis. It is a task to which I am
indeed unequal. Consult your own heart, it is alone capable of
advising you. The truly fraternal regard, which you feel for
our most amiable sister, does not require to be admonished of
the respect which is due to her feelings. You alone are a
competent judge of that conduct which is best calculated
not to wound her delicacy; and it is that alone which you are
capable of pursuing. Whatever may be ycnxr determination,
you will not be the less dear to me. That spirit of impertinent
malice, which mankind seem determined to cherish at the
expense of all that should constitute their enjojrment, may,
indeed, intrude upon oiu* arrangements and deprive me of your
society; but it can never rob me of the piu^ attachment which
I have conceived for you, and which can never cease to animate
me. I hold this portion of good, at least, in contempt of an
unfeeling and calumnious world. Invulnerable to every shaft,
it derides their impotent malice.
"Let me suggest to you to pursue that line of conduct which
you shall be disposed to adopt, as if it were the result of your
> Garland, 175.
Randolph as a Man 559
previous detennination. Prosecute, therefore, your intended
journey, and do not permit malicious curiosity to enjoy the
wretched satisfaction of supposing that IT has the power of
influencing your actions.
"I have perceived with extreme pleasure that your mind has
for some time been rapidly regaining its pristine energy. Keep
it, therefore, I beseech you, my friend, in constant exercise.
Get up some object of pursuit. Make to yourself an image,
and, in defiance of the decalogue, worship it. Whether it be
excellence in medicine or law, or political eminence, determine
not to relax your endeavors until you have attained it. You
must not suffer your mind, whose activity must be employed,
to prey upon itself. The greatest blessing, which falls to the
lot of man, is thus converted into the deadliest curse. I need
not admonish you to keep up the intercourse which subsists
between us, and which nothing shall compel me to relinquish.
"I trust that I shall hear from you in the space of a week at
farthest. Meanwhile rest assured of the undiminished affec-
tion of the firmest of your friends."*
But Thompson never came back to Bizarre as a home ;
soon lapsed into his old vagabond, dissipated courses, and
could think of nothing better to do than to wander off on
a long pedestrian excursion to Canada.' Degraded,
however, as he was, Randolph did not forsake him, even
though he manifested a disposition to keep entirely aloof
from his friend.
"Whatever may be the motives which have determined you
to renounce all intercourse with me,** Randolph wrote to him,
when his fortunes and his reputation were at their lowest ebb,
**it becomes me, perhaps, to respect them; yet to be deterred
from my present purpose by punctilio would evince a coldness
of temper which I trust does not belong to me, and would, at
the same time, convict me to myself of the most pitiful in-
sincerity, in professing for you a regard which has never been
'Garland, v. i, 176.
•/i., 177.
56o John Randolph of Roanoke
inferior to my professions, and which [it] is not in any circum-
stance entirely to destroy. To tell you that during the last
three months I have observed your progress through life with
imintemipted and increasing anxiety, would be to give you a
faint idea of what has passed in my mind. The mortification,
which I have experienced, on hearing you spoken of in terms of
frigid and scanty approbation, can only be exceeded by that
which I have felt on the silent embarrassment which my
inquiries have occasioned those who were unwilling to wound
your character or my feelings. You know me too well, Will-
iam, to suppose that my inquiries have been directed by the
miserable spirit which seeks to exalt itself in the depression of
others. They have, on the contrary, been very few, and made
with the most guarded circumspection. To say the truth, I
have never felt myself equal to the task of hearing the recital
of details which were too often within my reach, and which not
unfrequently courted my attention. They have always re-
ceived from me the most decisive repulse. My own pride
would never bear the humiliation of permitting any one to
witness the mortification which I felt. After all this preamble,
let me endeavor to effect the purpose of this address. Let me
beg of you to ask yourself what are your present piirsuits, and
how far congenial to your feelings or character. I have not, I
cannot, so far have mistaken you; you cannot so successfully
have deceived yourself. Yours is not the mind which can
derive any real or lasting gratification from the pursuits or the
attainments of a grovelling ambition. These may afford a
temporary and imperfect relief from that voice which tells you
who you are and what is expected from you. The world is
well disposed to forgive the aberrations of youthful indiscretion
from the straight road of prudence; but there is a point beyond
which its temper can no longer be played upon. After a
certain degree of resistance, it becomes more prone to asperity
than it had ever been to indulgence. But grant that its good
nature were unlimited, you are not the character who can be
content to hold by so htmailiating a tenure that which you can
and ought to demand of right. Can you be content to repose
on the courtesy of mankind for that respect which you may
challenge as your due, and which may be enforced when with-
Randolph as a Man 561
held? Can you quit the high ground and imposing attitude of
self-esteem to solicit the precarious bounty of a contemptuous
and contemptible worid? I can scarcely forgive myself for
dwelling so long on so invidious a theme. I have long medi-
tated to address you on this subject. One of the dissuasives
from the plan is now removed. Let me again conjure you to
ask yourself seriously : what are your present objects of pur-
suit ? How far any laudable acquirement can be attained by a
town residence, particularly in a tavern ? Whether such a life
be compatible with the maintenance of that respectability of
character which is necessary to give us value in the eyes of
others or of ourselves ? And let me conjure you to dissolve by a
single exertion the spell which now enchains you. The only
tie which could have bound you is no more. Town fetters are
but those of habit, and that of but short standing. Were it
confirmed, there would indeed be but little hope, and this letter
would never have been penned. As it would be improper to
urge the dissolution of your present plan of life without point-
ing out some alternative, I recommend a residence of twelve or
eighteen months with Taylor, and a serious application, before
it be too late, to that profession which will be a friend to you
when the sunshine insects who have laughed with you in your
prosperity shall have passed away with the genial season which
gave them birth. The hour is fast approaching, be assured,
when it will be in vain to attempt the acquirement of pro-
fessional knowledge. Too well I know that readiness of appre-
hension and sprightliness of imagination will not make amends
for application. The latter serves but to light up our
ignorance.
**There is one topic on which I cannot trust even my pen.
Did I not believe that this letter would occasion you pain, it
certainly never had been written. Yet to write it with that
view would be a purpose truly diabolical. You are a physician ;
you probe not the wounds of the dead. Yet 'tis to heal, and
not to agonize, that you insert your instrument into the living
body. Whatever may be the effect of this attempt, whatever
may be the disposition which it creates in you, I shall never,
while you live, cease to feel an interest in your fate. Every
one here remembers you with undiminished affection. If I
YQI.. u.— 36
562 John Randolph of Roanoke
judge from myself, you are more than ever interesting to them,
and whenever, if ever, you revisit Bizarre, you will recognize in
every member of the family your unchanged friends. Adieu,
J. R., Jr."«
It is said that this generous letter had its effect. Be
this as it may, after spending a few months with Creed
Taylor in the vicinity of Bizarre, Thompson repaired to
Richmond and read law in the oflBce of George Hay.
When he had completed his course of study, Randolph
procured a public position for him in the Territory of
Louisiana, and, in the spring of 1804, while he was on his
way to his post, after marrying an estimable wife, sent
him this Godspeed :
**When I requested you to inquire at the post-office at
Abingdon for a letter from me, it did not occur to me by how cir-
cuitous a route my communication must travel before it could
reach that place. To guard against accidents, therefore, I
have directed it to be forwarded to Nashville, in case you
should have left Abingdon before its arrival there. We have
been every day suggesting to ourselves the inconvenience to
which you must have been exposed by the bad weather which
we have invariably experienced ever since your departure, and
regretting that the situation of your affairs would not permit
you to continue with us until a change took place. You, how-
ever, my good friend, have embarked upon too serious a voy-
age to take into consideration a little rough weather upon
the passage. The wish which I feel to add my mite to the
counsels, through which alone it can prove prosperous, is
repressed by the reflection that your success depends upon the
discovery of no new principle of hiunan affairs, but upon the
application of such as are familiar to all, and which none know
better how to estimate than yourself. Decision, firmness,
independence, which equally scorns to yield our own rights as
to detract from those of others, are the only guides to the
esteem of the world, or of otu^elves. A reliance upon our
> Garland, v. i, 206.
Randolph as a Man 563
resources for all things, but especially for relief against that
arch-fiend, the taedium vitae, can alone guard us against a state
of dependence and contempt. But I am growing sententious,
and, of course, pedantic. Judy joins me in every good wish
to yourself and Mrs. Thompson. Permit me to add that there
is one being in the world who will ever be ready to receive you
with open arms, whatsoever may be the fate of the laudable
endeavors which you are now making."*
But this letter proved only a last sad viaticum for poor
Thompson, who died before his journey was completed,
leaving Randolph, after all his unselfish efforts to set him
on his feet, nothing to do except to endorse on the letter
which we have just reproduced, when in some manner it
had come back into his hands, the brief but all significant
words: ''W. T. May 13, 1804. Alas!"^
There are several references to Maria Ward in Thomp-
son's letters to Randolph. This is one :
**In our lives, my brother, we have seen two fine women
(Mrs. Judith Randolph and Miss M — a W — d) ; never extend
your list; never trust yoxir eyes or your ears, for they stand
alone."
And this is another :
**M — a the amiable, the good M — a, has honored me with
a short letter; such tokens of esteem, such evidences of gener-
ous pity, for a man cast on the wide world, unfriended and
unprotected, create a gratitude not to be expressed. It is not
until we are humiliated by misfortune that we feel these things,
for, in the height of worldly prosperity, the wish and the
pursuit go hand in hand, and successive gratifications blunt the
sensibilities of our nature. Whilst we rejoice in a mortality
as the termination of lives mutually painful, in which we have
been called on to exercise a fortitude sufficient to overwhelm
minds less noble and less firm, in which every fair prospect has
'Garland, v. i, 209.
» W., V. I, 210.
564 John Randolph of Roanoke
been blighted, every brilliant expectation thwarted, and every
tender emotion hatefully disappointed, let us linger out a
remnant which cannot be long, mutually cherishing and
supporting each other on the tedious road. My dear friend,
let us not leave each other behind; for, alas! how sterile and
how barren would creation then be! United, we are strong,
but unsupported we could not stand against the increasing
pressure of misfortune. Often do I exclaim, would that you
and I were cast on some desert island, there to live out the
remainder of our days unpolluted by the communication with
man. Separated from each other, our lips are sealed, for the
expression of sentiments which exalt and ennoble htmianity.
Even in the support of virtue the cautious language of vice
must be adopted ; even in the defence of truth we must descend
to the artifice of error."*
A very different sort of friend from William Thompson
was Joseph Bryan, who strode about on his own honest,
sturdy legs and scorned stilts of any kind. He was such
a character as Sir Walter Scott would have loved to por-
tray; bluff, hearty, affectionate, choleric, vehement, and
even violent, but cool in the face of peril, and quick to
make generous atonement for any injury inflicted by his
impetuosity. Nor was his vigorous mind, improved by an
European education and not unimproved by familiarity
with good books, one to be despised. * * The character of Mr.
Bryan was every way original, " we are told in an obituary
notice of him written by Randolph. **He was himself
and no one else at second hand. ' ' A person that might
have served as a model to the statuary, wonderful activity
and strength of body, imited to undaunted resolution,
generosity as conspicuous as the robust, unflinching man-
hood with which it was associated, fidelity in friendship,
unimpeachable integrity, and a mind of the first order,
stored with various, but desultory, reading, are the endow-
ments attributed by this notice to Bryan. ^
' Garland, v. i, 183. » Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 565
After serving for three sessions, as a representative
from Georgia in the House, with Randolph, he resigned
his seat because his father-in-law, a resident of the Eastern
Shore of Maryland, to whom he refers in one of his letters
to Randolph as **ye old Hidalgo on the Sassafras,"' had
announced his intention of paying him a visit at his
distant home ; which was on a sea island near Savannah.
After the death of Bryan, his wife rettuned all the letters
written to him by Randolph to the latter. They perished,
we suppose, at the hands of Judge Leigh ; but many of the
letters written by Bryan to Randolph are still in existence,
and they are as fresh and animated as if the writer had
penned them but yesterday.
They make manifest, first of all, the fact that Bryan
admired and loved Randolph as intensely as his son John
Randolph Bryan did after him. He died on Sept. 5,
18 1 2, and among his letters to Randolph was one written
just a little over a year before in which he said: "God
bless you and yours, is the prayer of your friend, who
may, in some respects, be compared to Dryden's Hind,
unchanging and unchanged. "^
Bryan's letters cover quite a wide range of topics.
One of the earliest, written in January, 1800, informed
Randolph, who had recently become a member of Con-
gress, that he was about to embark soon for England and
wished him to secure certificates of citizenship for himself
and a companion from President Jefferson. ^ In another
letter, written shortly after this one, he gave Randolph
his reasons for leaving the United States.
*'I have in that time, [the preceding twelve months] my
friend," he said, *'been on the verge of becoming a member of
the fraternity of Benedicts, as you humorously style married
men. In short, I paid my addresses to an accomplished young
'June II, 1809, Id.
"July 14, 181 1, Id. > Garland, v. i, 177.
566 John Randolph of Roanoke
woman, of both family and fortune, in Carolina — quarrelled
with my father and mother because I would not relinquish
the pursuit — ^followed her with every prospect of the desired
success for eighteen months — went to her abode last Christmas
with the comfortable idea of manying her on the commence-
ment of the new year — and was discarded by her parents be-
cause mine would not consent to the match. There were one
or two other trifling objections, such as — I was a , a man
of no religion — a Georgian; and would take their child where
they might never see her face again, &c. All this you may
think apocryphal ! — *tis true, upon my word. Yet *my heart
does not bleed at every pore from the bitterest of recollections' ;
to be sure I was in a hell of a taking for two or three days. But
I found that keeping myself employed made it wear off to a
miracle. So much for my love affairs. You may perhaps be
a little surprised at my going to England; 'twas a sudden
resolution, I must confess ; I'll tell you how it happened. While
I was laboring under the horrors of my dismission, I swore to
my little grisette, in order to melt her, that, if she would not
quit father and mother and run away with me, I would go off
immediately and fight the Russians! She would not do that,
so I am obliged by a point of honor to make the attempt
at least.'"
When this letter was written, Bryan expected to sail
from Savannah about Feb. 20, 1800. Through the
rather grandiose diction of the reply which Randolph
made to it, we can discern the first stages of the melan-
cholia, of which he was afterwards to be so frequently
the prey.
*' Bryan, my friend," he said, "you are about to render
yourself, me, all who are interested in your happiness, wretched,
perhaps, for ever. These are more numerous than you are at
present willing to allow. At one stroke, you are about to
sever all those ties which bind you to the soil which gave you
birth, to the tender connections of your childhood, to the most
constant of friends — ^relations which give to existence its only
'Garland, v. 1. 177.
Randolph as a Man 567
value. Your sickly taste loathes that domestic happiness
which is yet in store for you — perhaps you deny that it can
have for yourself any existence ; you prefer to it, irash of foreign
growth. You seek in vain, my friend, to fly from misery. It
will accompany you — it will rankle in that heart in whose cruel
wounds it rejoices to dwell. It is of no country, but yourself ^
and time alone can soothe its rage.
''Among the dangers you are about to encounter, I will not
enimierate those of a personal nature; not because they are in
themselves contemptible, however they may be despised by
yourself, but because, in comparison to the gigantic mischiefs
which you are about to court, they are indeed significant. I
mean in respect to yourself — to your friends they are but too
formidable. Recall then, I beseech you, your rash deter-
mination— pause, at least, upon the rash step which you
meditate! It is, however, the privilege of friendship only to
advise. The certificates which you require, I will endeavor to
procure [in] time enough to accompany this letter. This is
Saturday, and, after the hour of doing business at the offices;
and, to be valid, they must issue from that of the Secretary of
State. Be not impatient, they shall be forwarded by Tues-
day's mail, in any event; letters from Jefferson to some of his
European friends shall follow them. . . .
**I, too, am wretched; misery is not your exclusive charter.
I have for some months meditated a temporary relinquishment
of my country. The execution of this scheme has no connection
with yours. The motives which produced it originated in
events which happened before I took my seat in Congress,
although I was then ignorant of their existence; they were,
indeed, prior to my election to an office, of which nothing but a
high sense of the obligations of public duty has prevented the
resignation. A second election could not in that event have
been practicable, until the present session was somewhat
advanced. I determined, therefore, not to relinquish my seat
until its expiration; then to resign it, and bid adieu to my
native shores for a few years, at least. In this determination I
still remain. If, therefore, you refuse to rescind your hasty
resolution, I desire permission to be the companion of your
voyage — to partake your sorrows and to share with you my
568 John Randolph of Roanoke
own — to be the friend of him who is to accompany you,
because he is yours. Yet, believe me, Joe, and it is unnecessary
to declare by what motives I am influenced to the assertion,
that I shall be glad to hear that I am to prosecute my voyage
alone — to be infonned that you have receded from a project
which has not, like my own, been the fruit of deliberate reserve.
I have indeed hoped that the relation of your own domestic
enjoyment would have beguiled many a sad hour of my life.
But. pardon me, my dear fellow, I see my indiscretion, it
shall not be repeated.
"If, then, you persist in carrying into execution your plan
take a passage with your friend for New York, or the Delaware^
it is open; meet me here about the middle of March — we rise in
April — there is a resolution laid upon oui table to adjourn
on the first of the month; it will certainly be carried; they
even talk of substituting 'March.' We ^^'ilI then embark
together for any part of the other continent that you may
prefer; I am indifferent about places. But if I go alone, I shall
take shipping for some English port, London or Liverpool, I
wish I could join you in Savannah; but it would be extremely
inconvenient. I fear the climate; a passage would be more
uncertain too from thence, and the accommodations periuqM
not so good. Yet I will even meet you there, or in Chariestoo,
in case you are resolved to leave America, if I can have yoar
company on no other terms. Write immediately and sobre
this business. I repeat, that it will be very inconvenietit to
take my passage from a southern port; it will likewise occa^on
delay. I shall have a voyage to make thither, and then to
wait the sailing of a vessel ; whereas, if you meet me here, I can
fix myself for any ship bound to Europe about the time of the
rising of Congress; and in the great ports of New York, Phila-
delphia, or Baltimore, we cannot fail to procure a speedy
embarkation, and agreeable berths. Again I entreat you to
write to me immediately upon the receipt of this: in expecta-
tion of the answer, I shall remain under no common anxiety
until its arrival. Meantime, remember, my friend, that
there is one person, at least, and he an unshaken friend who is
not insensible to your worth. Farewell, dear Joseph,
"P. S. I had like to have omitted enjoining you to preserve
Prom tha portntit ownad bj WUlum Everwd Makda, DkniriU*, Va,
Randolph as a Man 569
inviolable secrecy with respect to my designs. The reason I
will detail to you at meeting. It is unnecessary to say that
they are not such as I should be ashamed to avow; yet I do not
wish it to be known that I am about to leave the country until
a week or ten days before my departxu-e. Adieu ^"*
This letter did not reach Bryan in time to alter his
intention of sailing from Savannah, and, in consequence,
Randolph's first voyage to Europe was deferred until the
year 1822.
When Bryan returned from Europe, it was only, of
course, to fall in love again ; this time with Delia Forman,
the daughter of General Forman, of the Eastern Shore of
Maryland, who had become an intimate friend of Ran-
dolph, doubtless through his intercourse with Joseph H.
Nicholson. This was after Bryan, at the solicitation of
Randolph, had been first an unsuccessful, and then a
successful, candidate for a seat in the House of Repre-
sentatives, ^ where he gave Randolph his whole-hearted
support, when the latter was hacking the heads of the
Yazoo hydra. Subsequent to his return from Europe,
he was at least once a guest at Bizarre, and it was from
this place that Randolph wrote to him on Sept. 8, 1804,
to this effect :
** Should this find you at Wilmington, which I heartily wish it
may not, I trust, my dear Bryan, that you will derive the most
satisfactory information from the inclosed respecting your fair
tyrant. To me the Major says not a word on the subject of
his daughter, but I infer from a variety of circimistances that
she is about this time on a visit to her aunt, Mrs. Van Bibber,
in Gloucester, about eighty miles from Richmond: I hope,
therefore, very soon to see you in Virginia.
**I have nothing worth relating, except that Mrs. Randolph
was almost as much disappointed as myself when our
messenger arrived last night from the post-office without a
« Garland, v. i, 179.
*IInd,t 210.
570 John Randolph of Roanoke
letter from you. How easy would it be, once a week, to say
'I am at such a place, in such health, and tomorrow shall go
to .* These little bulletins of your well-being and motions
would be a thousand times more interesting to me than those of
his Britannic Majesty's health, or his Corsican Highness's
expeditions. Let me beg of you to make dispatch."'
The next thing that the correspondence between
Bryan and Randolph discloses is the fact that Bryan is
in Chestertown on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and
writing to Randolph with all the unrestrained joy of the
sheer love of living :
"You will hardly believe me when I tell you that my tyrants
have had the unparalleled barbarity to postpone my marriage
imtil the 25th of this month," he said. "Sumptuousness,
pomp, parade, &c., must be observed in giving away a jewel
worth more than the kingdoms of this world. I rather suspect
I shall be myself the most awkward and ungraceful movable
used on the occasion: curse it, I hate to be exhibited; and
nothing but the possession of the jewel itself would induce me
to run the gauntlet of felicitation I shall receive from the
whole file of collaterals. Lovely as her person is, I prize her
heart more. Jack ! What have I done to induce the good God
to favor me so highly? Sinner that I am, I deserve not the
smallest of his gifts, and behold I am treated more kindly than
even Abraham, who saw God face to face, and was called his
friend; he, poor fellow, had to put up with his sister Sarah, who,
beside other exceptionable qualities, was cursed with a bad
temper; while I, having sought among the beauties of the
earth, have found and obtained the loveliest and best; which I
am willing to prove against all comers on foot or on horseback,
in the tented field with sword and spear, or on the roaring
ocean at the cannon's mouth. If you will come and see us [in
Georgia], my Delia will make one of her best puddings for your
entertainment. In the course of a year or two, you may
expect to see yoiir friend Brain metamorphosed into a gentle-
man of high polish, able to make as spruce a bow and to hand a
'Garland, v. i, 211.
Randolph as a Man 57 1
lady to her carriage with all the graces of an Adonis. Adieu!
may heaven prosper and bless you.'*'
In other letters from Bryan to Randolph, there are
references to Randolph's quarrel with the Jefferson
administration, and they indicate that the former had fully
grasped the unhappy effect which it might have upon
Randolph's political future. '*You have passed the
Rubicon, and Madison or yourself must down, " he wrote
in 1 806. * He consoled himself, however, with the reflection
that if Randolph fell, he could only cease to be Chairman
of the Committee of Ways and Means. **They can hurt
you no more, " he said, " let them rain heaven and earth. "
In a subsequent letter, he said very sensibly :
**I fear too that there is a systematic arrangement made
from Maine to Georgia to deprive you of the influence you
have obtained in consequence of your long and effective
struggles to further the Republican cause. The Federalists
by their deceitful approbation will injure you more than the
sop-disant Northern Democrats by their open hostility. It is
a desperate remedy, and perhaps illy-advised, but I think, if
it is compatible with the injunction of secrecy, you ought to
come forward and disclose the circumstances which induced
you to separate in some measure from the administrators of
the government. The people want your motives. "^
Equally sensible was Bryan's advice about Jefferson:
"I feel rejoiced that you are about to do yourself justice
on Madison and his Myrmidons. If I may advise, leave
the President alone, unless self-defence makes it necessary
to use his name."*
Cautious as Bryan's advice usually was to Randolph
in political respects, he entered zealously into the bold
> Garland, v. i, 211.
'April. 23, 1806. Bryan MSS.
»June 3, 1806, Id.
4 June 24, 1806, Id,
572 John Randolph of Roanoke
intrigue by which Randolph sought to bowl Madison oflf
the Presidential alley with Monroe. Referring to Gideon
Granger, Bryan said in another letter:
"There is no charm in the name of Gideon. God will not
couple his name or his arm with such a miscreant, and his
squadron will be discomfited. Let not him be your aim.
Shoot at nobler game; strike at the root and the branches and
leaves will come to the groimd. In short, the future President
must be of the old school, and you must have a hand in making
him President."*
He did all that he could to secure popular support for
Monroe in Georgia, and he kept Randolph fully apprized
of every movement of the political tides there. After
Randolph's speech on Gregg's resolution, he wrote
derisively of Milledge, a Georgia politician:
" Milledge is in great wrath with you for saying 'You would
rather be tried by a British jury than Bonaparte with a file of
grenadiers in the wood of ' Valenceniennies ' — (Spelt as pro-
nounced).** *'His own words verbatim, repeated to about a
dozen crackers in my presence," Bryan adds disdainfully.^
He was quick to tell Randolph that the Georgia Legis-
lature had named one of its new counties after him; a
county which bid fair to become one of the most important
in the State. ^ In another letter, he tells Randolph that
he may do what he pleases with Troup and Smelt, two
active Georgia politicians, ** by condescension or brandy, "
although he believed that neither was deficient in under-
standing or honesty, and that both Harris and Spalding,
two other active Georgia poUticians, adored him.'*
Encouraged by Randolph's reviving influence during the
» Apr. 23, 1806, Bryan MSS.
'Sept. 12, 1806, Id,
i Dec. 2, 1807, Id.
4 Nov. 7, 1808, Id,
Randolph as a Man 573
second session of the Ninth Congress, Bryan wrote: "I
find that you are getting ahead again; an easy matter to
you, no flattery. " * In one of his letters, he also mentioned
the fact that Eppes had written to him in "becoming,
nay, high terms" of Randolph; though at the same time
expressing his regret that Randolph's manners to him
should be repulsive ; and Bryan added that he wished that
Randolph could be reconciled to him. '
The political features of these letters, however, are by
no means the most interesting. One of them deals with
the point of honor involved in the duel as if it were a sort
of colic to be relieved only by a little blood-letting.
Speaking of a wrathful conversation that he had had
with an individual named Wright about the Yazoo Fraud,
Bryan said :
" I threw a tiunbler at him, which hit him on the head. He
returned, and, while my friends very kindly pinioned me,
struck me twice in the face. You will oblige jne by settling
matters with him, or his friend, as soon as may be, in such a
way as you know calculated to give me ease. "^
Bryan was not slow, however, to make amends for one
of his rash outbreaks. He was no mere riocator de lana
caprina. Among the Bryan manuscripts is a letter to
some one in which he refers to a fracas into which he had
been drawn at Louisville, Georgia, in these contrite terms :
"You may suppose, Sir, that I am pleased with the issue
of this affair. I solemnly assure you I am not. I am
ashamed of the beginning, ashamed of the consequences
and ashamed of the end."* Pleasingly contrasted with
this violent explosion of ill-regulated temper, are the
revelations of Bryan's devoted affection for Randolph,
» Jan. 24, 1807, Bryan MSS.
»Mar. 8, 1S07, Id.
3 Jan. 27, 1806, Id.
* Dec. 10, 1802, Id.
574 John Randolph of Roanoke
and his own family, and for plantation life in Georgia,
which we find in his letters to Randolph. "Adieu, dear
misanthrope, I am going to Delia," are the concluding
words of one of them. * " God bless you, you have many
friends here, none of which love you more than Joseph
Bryan," are those of another.*
One of the desires of Bryan's heart was that Randolph
should pay him another visit :
**You are much beloved in this State," he wrote, "and I
wish you could come among us. Remember yotu* promise to
visit me in May. You must lay your hands on my son and
yours before I die. Call him what you please, so you bless
him. My little Georgia thrives apace. I have inherited
about 40 negroes since November, and, if you will come out
and say the word, * I want them, ' they are yours. God bless
you. Randolph can say godfather. "^
Indeed, Bryan rarely wrote a letter to Randolph in
which he did not have something to say about Randolph's
godson. A request from Randolph that he might be the
godfather of the child provoked these characteristic
comments :
** If you are godfather to anything of the name of Bryan, I
fear you will have more sin to answer for than was packed on
the back of Christian in The Pilgrim's Progress. I take the
request to be a further proof of your friendship, and, if the
poor soul is to enter at all into the pale of Grace, I will attend
toit."^
A few weeks later, he wrote to Randolph :
**My boy, as he increases in age, increases in beauty. He
has fine blue eyes, fair complexion and hair darker than yours.
» Feb. 21, 1806, Bryan MSS.
> June 3, 1806, Id,
3 Jan. 31, 1808, Id.
^ March 18, 1806, Id,
Randolph as a Man 575
His mother thinks him a finished performance. As to me, I
say no more than what is above written. I wish he may
possess the talent and virtues of his future godfather. ""
Another letter pronounces the child truly a cherub.*
In still another, Bryan writes: "Citizen Randolph is
making a terrible racket in the room, dressed in a scarlet
frock and check apron. "^ And in yet another, he fears
that Randolph's godson would need a dozen godfathers
to keep him from sinning; for a more mischievous child,
he said, never was bom, nor one more obstinate. * Later
on, he wrote to Randolph that his prot6g6 was as saucy as
need be, spelt in two syllables and was as active as a cat,
but that the writer's son, Tom, was worth two of him.*
This letter was written some months after a preceding
one in which Randolph had been informed that his godson
had as much spirit in embryo as his godfather, and that,
a few minutes before, he had thrown a large piece of
lightwood at his father, believing that the latter was
hurting his mother. *
Many are the playful references in Bryan's letters to
the help that Randolph had given him in his courtship
of Delia. After telling him in one letter that, if he would
pay him a visit, he would find lamb, veal, fish, terrapin, and
laughter in abundance, would literally kill poor Spalding
with joy, and make the midriffs of Houston and Bailey,
as well as those of his other friends, quiver with ecstasy,
Bryan said :
*' It is worth the ride to see Randolph, who, taken altogether,
is nearly as much your son as mine. You courted for me,
recommended me to the papa, and he bears your name, to say
« Apr. 23, 1806, Bryan MSS.
•Oct. 19, 1806, Id.
» Dec. 28, 1806, Id.
« July 16, 1809, Id.
• May 27, 1 8 10, Id.
•Jan. 4, 1810, Id.
576 John Randolph of Roanoke
nothing of the holy rite which is to place his hopes of eternal
salvation on the moral lessons you will give him."*
In the succeeding year, he refers to Delia again :
"You send your love to Delia by every letter, and, faith, I
begin to think she loves you more than she ought to do, con-
sidering some things before marriage. She says that, if you
are worth 2 pence, you ought to come. I move to amend by
striking out two pence and inserting one htmdred dollars."*
At home, all the interests, joys, and sorrows of Bryan
were those of a typical Southern planter. His place of
residence was, of course, very malarious, and Randolph
observed on one occasion that, in his references to the
health of his family and himself, he always spoke of "the
fever" as if he had taken out a patent on it.* In one
letter to Randolph, he says that he has nearly 100 bags
of cotton on hand, commonly worth $10,000, after having
disposed of one-third of his crop to advantage; but that,
owing to the embargo, this residue was worth little more
than nothing.^ In another letter, he says: **I am a
planter and nothing else. All my faculties are employed
by grass, bugs, rains, dry weather, etc."^ At times, he was
in debt, as most Southern planters, no matter how much
their lands and negroes might increase, were likely to
be. In 1 8 12, he wrote to Randolph that he believed
that he might with safety assert that he was ''worth
nearly twice as much property" at that time as he had
possessed when he married*; but, struggle as he might, he
foimd himself face to face occasionally with the necessity
« Nov. 28, 1806, Bryan MSS.
» March 8, 1807, M
J Letter to Nicholson, Bizarre, Sept. 27, 1806, Nicholson MSS., Libr.
Cong.
4 Feb. 23, 1808, Bryan MSS.
«May 27, 1807, Id,
•March i, 1812, Id.
Randolph as a Man 577
of selling some of his land and negroes. In one of his
letters, he wrote :
** However, I am in truth a very rich man, could I bear the
idea of selling land and negroes. This I shall do, however my
feelings may be injured, next winter, if something out of the
common course does not happen. Were cotton to rise to the
usual price, and no curse of the elements or caterpillars molest
me, I could be all right. "'
On another occasion, he sums up pithily in his own
case the lot of most Southern planters, even the richest :
'* I have little money, but plenty of everything else. '* ^
The whinny of the horse, it is hardly necessary to say,
runs through Bryan's letters. In one of them, he tells
Randolph that he is about to piirchase an imported
stallion, **a grandson of Rockingham" and that he had
purchased a mare impregnated by Bedford. ^ In another
letter, he notes that Randolph still has **a little love for
the smack of the whip, " and then follow some observa-
tions on Hyperion, his *'poor friend Roanoke," "old
Jacobin," and Randolph's colt out of his imported mare
by Dragon, which were doubtless very interesting to
Randolph at the time, but have become a little pass6 with
the lapse of 114 years.-*
After reading the following letter from Randolph to
Bryan, our regret that almost all of his letters to Bryan
should have been destroyed receives a new edge :
** If you had been *like other men, ' our friendship, perhaps,
had never existed; or, what is more probable, it would have
terminated long ago. It was because I thought you 'made
of different materials* from the rest of the world that I first
attached myself so strongly to you. Your mention, however,
' July 14, 181 1, Bryan MSS.
^ March 8, 1807, Id.
i Oct., 1807, Id.
* Oct, 19, 1806, Id.
VOL. II. — 37
578 John Randolph of Roanoke
of the price of the chair smells strongly of the pomps and
vanities of this wicked life, which you, or your godfathers for
you, have long since solemnly renounced. It is as if you were
not only as other men, but our connection a mere dirty traffic
of interest, or convenience, instead of being what it really is,
the offspring of pure and disinterested attachment. I did
not oppose your purchasing Meade's carriage, in order to
seU you mine, but from considerations of the inconvenience
he might feel. I hope, therefore, to hear no more about the
price of my chair. On a fair settlement of our accounts, were
such a thing practicable, I believe I should fall more than its
value in your debt. I retiuned home yesterday after a week's
absence. I was siunmoned on the federal grand jury, which
gave me an opportunity of being acquainted with the mys-
teries of the celebrated Logwood [the forger] a gentleman of
great ingenuity and address, who has kindly tmdertaken to
supply the deficiency of our circulating medium.
**I took Petersburg in my way home, where I saw Meade,
who is at length settled there. He is in bad health, threatened
with a return of his old complaint in the breast, and worse
spirits. He spoke of you with the warmest affection. Ryland
Randolph, too, has returned, much benefited by his trip to
New York. For Heaven's sake, make haste and put old
Archer's advice into execution, that you may return once
more among Us. I have not shewn you half my friends, and
the few neighbors I have were buried in professional business
when you were here. Apropos of returning. A letter from
Fonnan, dated Rose Hill, 25 April, 1804, Extract: 'Delia
returned home last week from Chestertown; she is quite well
and in good spirits.' If the fascinating spell of her name
does not bring you northward, I shall begin to think you a
faint-hearted fellow, who will never win a fair lady, unless the
proverbial wisdom of our nurses and grandmothers should
prove sheer nonsense, which I am by no means inclinied to
believe, at least in relation to female concerns. Besides, you
seem to have entered into the spirt of racing, and will be able to
hold as learned a discourse on blood, bone, speed and bottom,
as the major, or myself, before the winter. Therefore, dis-
patch your worldly concerns, and attend to the spiritual.
Randolph as a Man 579
Congress meets on the first of November, and, in despite of
'bad accommodations, worse roads, extravagant bills,* yea
and even of * drunken society/ you must take this house in
your way to Washington. If this was a case that admitted
of argument, I would ask whether, if Congress sat on Cape
Florida (as I wish they did), you would suffer me to go by
water to Augustine and pass you by as if I were a Pharisee
or a Levite (which I am not) and you a publican and sinner
(which you are). Yes, a publican who entertains all comers
gratis. I therefore signify to you my pleasure that you appear
here accordingly. By the way, how you found the road expen-
sive, where I have never been able to get rid of more than
three dollars in twenty-four hours, I know not, or rather I do
know. I have very little propensity to a rigid economy
myself, but I never paid more than 15 or 20 cents for crossing
Staunton River, where you generously gave six dollars. I
have no doubt that expresses were instantly dispatched to let
all persons concerned know that a rich Georgian Nabob, with
pockets more distended than his cotton bags, was on the road.
You say yourself that you are a little purse-proud, and those,
who are so but a little, pay for it a great deal. Now as 20 : 600
:: your expenses : to mine, and, as I disbursed about three
dollars a day, you must have expended ninety. So says the
rule of three. You had need to travel at a pretty rapid rate
under such circumstances. *'"
Other intimate friends of Randolph in the earlier stages
of his career were Joseph H. Nicholson; Joseph C. Clay;
James W. Gamett ; and Nathaniel Macon (a) , all of whom
served in the lower House with him. It was doubtless
through Nicholson that Randolph first became acquainted
with Delia and her father, General Forman. ** Bryan
was so kind as to give me his company for some time on
his way to Georgia,'* Randolph wrote to Nicholson,
before Delia became Bryan's wife. * * And a most pleasant
time it was. Do you see his Dulcinea frequently ? She
is a charming woman, and deserves such a worthy fellow
« Bizarre, 30 May (1804), Bryan MSS.
58o John Randolph of Roanoke
as my friend, which is what I would not venture to say to
all the ladies whom I have seen. " ' Subsequent to Delia's
marriage, he wrote to the same friend:
**I have late letters from Rodney and Bryan. They are
both well, and the last is happy with his little piquant wife as
heart could desire. She is, indeed, a charming woman and,
for her sake, I regret extremely the breach with her father.
Pray let me know if there is any prospect that my friend, the
Major, will at last acquit himself with credit in this business. "'
Just what the cause of this breach was is not entirely
clear. Perhaps, it was because General Forman was
averse to having his daughter live at such a great distance
from him. At any rate, we know that he offered to give
Bryan a life estate in his country-seat on the Eastern
Shore of Maryland, called * * Rose Hill, " if he would become
a resident of Maryland. Perhaps, it was because the
General tied his purse strings into too hard a knot.
"Speaking of the papa," Bryan declared in one of his letters
to Randolph, when he anticipated a visit from his father-in-
law, "I request that, in case he passes through Washington,
and sees you, you will treat him in a friendly way — ^if the
contrary, he will be apt to suppose your conduct the conse-
quence of impressions stamped by myself. He is coming too
fast. He is a queer mortal ; but after all I am at a loss to know
whether he is resolved to do right or wrong. I suspect the
former. As to the property, old men seldom like to part with
any; besides it may not suit him at this time. "^
Whatever the origin of the breach was, Randolph soon
noted that General Forman kept aloof from him, and the
relations between the General and Bryan were never
cordial. But, like a good daughter, Delia made a per-
' Bizarre, July i, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
» Bizarre, July 28, 1805, Id.
3 Nov. 28, 1806, Br>'an MSS.
Randolph as a Man 581
sistent point of being reconciled to her father, and formed
a cordial regard for his second wife, who may, after all,
have supplied the ferment that stirred up the whole
trouble.
Many of the observations made by Randolph in his
letters to Nicholson on the course of political events have
already been laid before the reader. Others are worthy
of mention, especially those in which Randolph com-
municated to Nicholson the feelings with which he had
been inspired by the efforts of Samuel Smith and his
brother, Robert Smith, of Maryland, *'the Lords Balti-
more** of Maryland politics, as they were called, and their
fellow conspirators, to drive Albert Gallatin out of the
oflRce of Secretary of the Treasury. During the admin-
istration of Madison, the group became known to Ran-
dolph, Macon, and their friends as **the invisibles,"
because of the secret manner in which their machinations
were conducted. Speaking of the Smiths in one of his
letters to Nicholson, Randolph said:
*'The doughty General is vulnerable at all points, (a) and
his plausible brother not much better defended. The first
has condemned in terms of unqualified reprobation the general
measures pursued by the administration, and lamented that
such was the public infatuation that no man could take a
position against it without destroying himself and injuring
the cause which he attempted to serve; with much more to
the same tune. I called some time since at the Navy Office
to ask an explanation of certain items of the estimates for
this year. The Secretary called up his Chief Clerk, who
knew very little more of the business than his master. I
propounded a question to the Head of the Department; he
turned to the clerk, like a boy who cannot say his lesson, and
with imploring countenance beseeches aid. The clerk, with
much assurance, gabbled out some commonplace jargon,
which I would not take for sterling. An explanation was
required, and both were dumb. This pantomime was re-
582 John Randolph of Roanoke
peated at every new item, until, disgusted and ashamed of the
degraded situation of the principal, I took leave without
pursuing the subject, seeing that my object could not be
attained. There was not one single question relating to the
Department that the Secretary could answer. "*
For a time, all intercourse between Gallatin and Ran-
dolph ended, though Randolph never ceased to entertain
a high degree of admiration for Gallatin's ability and
usefulness, (a)
''Like yourself," he wrote to Nicholson, "I have no com-
munication with the great folks. Gallatin used formerly to
write to me, but of late our intercoiu^e has dropped. I think
it is more than two years since I was in his house. How this
has happened I can't tell, or rather I can, for I have not been
invited there. As to the rest, they were not worth cultivat-
* >f
mg.
It was in this letter that in his witty way, after express-
ing the opinion that the Jefferson Administration would
be as supine under the Chesapeake outrage as it had been
under previous outrages, Randolph said :
*' I should not be surprised, however, if the Drone or Htunble
Bee (the Wasp has sailed already) should be dispatched with
two millions (this is our standing first bid) to ptu'chase Nova
Scotia; and then we might go to war in peace and quiet to
ascertain its boundaries. *'*
Afterwards, the Smith faction, reinforced by Wm. B.
Giles, harassed Gallatin and the administration of Madi-
son so successfully that Randolph declared in a letter to
Nicholson that Madison was President de jure only.
"Who exercises the oflSce de facto,'' he said, "I know not;
but it seems agreed on all hands that * there is something be-
" Feb. 17, 1807, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
» Bizarre, Jul. 21, 1807, Id,
Randolph as a Man 583
hind the throne greater than the throne itself.', I cannot
help differing with you respecting *s [Gallatin's]
resignation. If his principal will not support him by his
influence against the cabal in the ministry itself, as well as out
of it, a sense of self-respect, it would seem to me, ought to
impel him to retire from a situation where, with a tremendous
responsibility, he is utterly destitute of power. Our cabinet
presents a novel spectacle in the political world, divided
against itself, and the most deadly animosity raging between
its principal members. What can come of it but confusion,
mischief and ruin. ""
Three days later, Randolph was reduced to such a
state of despair that the whole world seemed black :
"I am not convinced by your representations respecting
altho they are not without weight. Surely it
would not be diflScult to point out to the President the impos-
sibility of conducting the affairs of the Government with such
a counteraction in the very Cabinet itself without assuming
anything like a disposition to dictate. Things as they are
cannot go on much longer. The Administration are now in
fact aground — at the pitch of a tide, and a high tide too:
nothing then remains but to lighten the ship, which a dead
calm has hitherto kept from going to pieces. If the Cabal
succeed in their present projects; and I see nothing but
promptitude and decision that can prevent it; the nation is
undone. The state of affairs for some time past has been
highly favorable to their views, which at this very moment
are more flattering than ever. I am satisfied that Mr. G,
[Gallatin], by a timely resistance to their schemes, might have
defeated them, and rendered the whole Cabal as impotent
as nature would seem to have intended them to be, for in
point of ability (capacity for intrigue excepted) they are
utterly contemptible and insignificant. I do assure you, my
friend, that I cannot contemplate the present condition of the
country without the gloomiest presages. The signs of the
times are of the most direful omen. The system cannot
« Georgetown, Feb. 14, 1811, Id.
584 John Randolph of Roanoke
continue (if system it may be called), and we seem rushing
into one general dissolution of law and morals. Some Didius,
I fear, is soon to become the pvu-chaser of our Empire — ^but,
in whatever manner it be effected, everything appears to
annotmce the coming of a master. Thank God ! I have no chil-
dren ; but I have those who are yet dear to me and the thought
of their being hewers of wood and drawers of water — or what
is worse, sycophants and time-servers, to the venal and corrupt
wretches, that are to be the future masters of this once free and
happy land, fills me with the bitterest indignation. Would it
not almost seem that man cannot be kept free: thajb his igno-
rance, his cupidity, and his baseness will countervail the effects
of the wisest institutions that disinterested patriotism can
plan for his security and happiness?"^
The struggle between Gallatin and the Smith and Giles
cabal finally came to absorb the attention of Randolph
to an extent that he himself could hardly understand.
"I could not learn, as I passed through Washington," he
wrote to Nicholson later, **how matters stood respecting G.
and S. The general impression there was that S. would go out
and that the Department of State would be offered to Monroe.
I do, however, doubt whether Madison will be able to meet the
shock of * The Aurora, ' * Whig, ' * Enquirer, ' * Boston Patriot,*
etc., etc., and it is highly probable that, beaten in detail
by the superior activity and vigor of the S s, he may
sink ultimately into their arms, and unquestionably will (in
that case) receive the law from them. I know not why I
should think so much on this subject, but it engrosses my
waking and sleeping thoughts. "^
As usual, Randolph was in the possession of authentic
information. He was always a capital scout, and on one
occasion declared that he had paid more for information
than any public man of his time. ^
» Georgetown, Feb. 17, 181 1, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
* Richmond, Mar. 16, 181 1, Nicholson MSS., Libi. Cong.
3 Letter to Dr. Brockenbrough, Dec. 26, 1827, Garl., v. 2, 297.
• Randolph as a Man 585
Some of the weightiest comments made by him on
contemporary politics were made in letters to Nicholson.
Take, for example, the following letter in regard to the
foreign relations of the United States in 1808:
"Suspend your opinion until you see the joint letter of M.
and [the] P. accompanying the rejected treaty. For some
good reason, no doubt, the S. of S's strictures on the treaty
were first read (even before the treaty itself), to secure, I pre-
sume, the first impression. Your surprise, I have no doubt,
will equal mine when you hear that the P. peremptorily
enjoined upon M. to connect with the demand for reparation
of the outrage on the Chesapeake claims which he had a previous
knowledge would not be conceded by G. B. even under the late
ministry, thus shutting with his own hand the door of repara-
tion to that insulting injury. As to G. B., I view her as the
aggressor upon us, and as acting a part little short of madness,
and yet I am convinced that the present crisis grows out of
the proceedings of the session of 1805-6, and that our govern-
ment does not wish to come to any accommodation with
England for fear of the resentment of France. The rejection
of the treaty was a fatal step, and exasperated the new min-
istry as a slight upon the nation, altho* I believe they were
otherwise glad of it.
**With you, I am clearly of the opinion that G. B. has .not
a shadow of right to require the withdrawal of the Proclama-
tion (neither had France, in 1798 any right to expect a renewal
of negotiations by a new mission from the U. S.), but, when
we had gone as far as we had done, it was hardly worth while
to go to war for the decimal fraction of a punctilio. The
issuing of the Proclamation without any attempt to enforce
respect to it was a weak measure. The withdrawal was of
less consequence, inasmuch as it might have been laid on
again in half an hour, in case the reparation proved insuflScient.
Besides, the declaration of G. B. that she disavowed the act,
as unathorized by her, and that she was ready (by a special
mission, suited to the solemnity of the occasion) to make
reparation, was a complete saving of our honor.
'* I forgot to state that the note which proved so offensive to
586 John Randolph of Roanoke
our government appears to me (taking into consideration
especially, the persons for whom it came) as a proof of
Candor and Good Faith; thereby putting us on our
guard; for surely, if no such caution had been given, the
right to retaliate upon the French wotdd not have been
affected.
**I send you an extract which will shew you how the business
of impressment stood. Our right was reserved. G. B. engaged
to forbear the exercise of that claimed by her, and stipulated
that hereafter she would enter into a negotiation on the
reserved right. Since writing the above, I have read Mr.
Monroe's letter to the S. of S. upon the subject of the rejected
treaty in which all his objections are refuted in a most masterly
style. If there is time for its operation, it will work prodigious
effects.""
Not without interest too is this letter:
** As to politics, I have nothing to say. Like the sailor who
was blown up at a theatre, I am wondering what trick they
will play next. If some change be not wrought very soon, I
shall be blown up in good earnest. Peter the Great, it seems,
was a bungling barbarian. Instead of contenting himself
with the navigation of his own Mississippi", the Volga, and
establishing manufactories at Moscow, he plunged into a
bloody war in order to procure an outlet thro' the Baltic for
the rude and bulky products of his country and an outlet for
foreign manufacturers. In those days, the virtue of perpetual
embargoes was unknown. It would be pleasant, if it were not
sorrowful, to observe in what opposite direction the poor,
plodding fanners of England and America are driven by the
monied interest to attain the same end. England bleeds at
every pore to force a vent for her manufactures, and we are
cooped up to force a home consumption. Who is it that says
that corruption is a proof of freedom, since arbitrary power
has but to order and is obeyed? Pity that corruption should
be too often the only proof of freedom. "*
« Washington, March 8, 1808, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
» Bizarre, Aug. 15, 1809.
Randolph as a Man 587
"War carried on by Giles and old Smilie and Willis
Alston!" Randolph exclaimed scornfully on another
occasion. **It must be against the pismires, for the
pigmies and cranes, or the frogs and mice, would be too
formidable antagonists. " ^
Nicholson died on Mar. 4. 181 7, at the age of forty-nine,
(a) and, at least, until Mar. 20 1812,* the intercourse
between him and Randolph was of the most affectionate
description. This was not because Randolph was not as
candid with him as he was with everyone else. On one
occasion he wrote to Nicholson in these frank terms :
** I should be deficient in my duties to you were I to neglect
to apprize you that your absence has excited observation and
even censure. It has been remarked, I know not how truly,
that you have not obtained from the House a dispensation
from its duties. I hope you know me too well not to perceivjB
at once the only motive which prompts this commtmication,
and, although I fear that I am but little calculated to live
forever in the palace of truth, I sincerely wish that, if the
monster, called the world, shall ever take the trouble to scruti-
nize my conduct, you will be good enough, when occasion
offers, to apprize me of such parts of it as his sovereign pleastire
may disapprove. "^
As usual, when Randolph loved a friend, he loved
Nicholson's wife and children too, and many are the
affectionate messages to her and them that we find
scattered through his letters to her husband.^ **Give
my love, yes, my love, to her and them, " was one of these
messages. 5 On another occasion, he referred to Mrs.
Nicholson as Nicholson's **charming moiety.^'^
* Bizarre, Feb. 15, 1810, Id.
« Id.
» Jan. I, 1801, Id,
< Bizarre, June 3, 1806, Id,
sRichm., Oct. 12, 1805, Id,
• Letter to Nicholson, Bizarre, Oct, 23,1805, Beverley D. Tucker MSS.
588 John Randolph of Roanoke
Among the letters from Randolph to Nicholson, are
two mysterious ones, written some three years apart, and
yet both apparently inspired by the same circumstances.
In the first, he wrote to Nicholson in these terms :
**By you, I would be understood. Whether the herd of
mankind comprehend me or not I care not. Yourself, the
speaker and Bryan are of all the world alone acquainted with
my real situation.
"On that subject I have only to ask that you will preserve
the same reserve that I have done. Do not misunderstand
me, my good friend. I do not doubt your honor or discretion
— ^far from it. But, on this subject, I am perhaps foolishly
fastidious.
**God bless you, my noble fellow. I shall ever hold you
most dear to my heart. ""
In the second of the two letters, Randolph said :
"Do you remember the event which some years ago pros-
trated all my faculties and made a mere child of me. I am
that very same child still. I have tried wine, company, business,
everything within my reach to divert my mind from the
subject, but haeret lethalis arundo,*'^
To what event in the life of Randolph do these two
letters refer? Doubtless to the rupture of his engagement
to Maria Ward.
It seems that Mrs. Nicholson, as well as her husband,
was interested in finding a wife for Randolph; but this
was early in his Congressional career.
** I beg that you will make my compliments to Mrs. Nichol-
son," he wrote to Nicholson on one occasion, "and tell her
that the happiness which she has allotted to me is too great I
fear to be realized. It is not my good fortune to obtain that
' Monday, Mar. 4, 1805, Nicholson MSS.
» Bizarre, May 27i 1808, Id.
Randolph as a Man 589
title to her esteem which the possession of an amiable woman
can never fail to confer. '*'
In the same letter, there is a touch of the conservative
sentiment which was such a marked feature of Randolph's
character :
**I am sorry," he said, ''that you have demolished the old
house, because I fear that you are about to enter upon a scene
of greater trouble than you are aware of ; and, moreover because
I have a respect for all that is antique (with a few important
exceptions). I would prefer dwelling in the mansion where
I had passed my infancy, even were it ruinous, to the posses-
sion of a palace."^
When Nicholson sent in his resignation to Congress,
Randolph was affected even to tears. ^
With the differences of opinion, aroused by the War of
1812, the correspondence between the two friends came
to an end (a), and a premonition of this result can be
found in the following letter written by Randolph from
Georgetown on Dec. 20, 181 1:
** I was highly gratified this evening to recognize among my
letters your well known character — but really, my good friend
— ^for I must indulge the frankness of my temper — I was not
merely disappointed but mortified when I had broken the seal:
mortified to find from the general air of your letter that you
had been hurt at my last. Need I assure you that nothing
was ever farther from my intention. Bear with me, I beseech
you. Recollect that I stand in no common situation, and
that he, who is beset with assassins of his character, and of
his life too, must feel that it is no time for him to press himself
upon his friends. It is in the sunshine of prosperity that I
could intrude, nay force myself upon them. My dear friend,
I never did nor ever will keep a ledgered account of courtesies
' Aug. 12, 1800, Nicholson MSS.
'Ibid.
3 H. of R. alias Bedlam, Apr. 10, 1806.
590 John Randolph of Roanoke
and visits and epistles with any man whom I esteem. But I
did think that there was something in my letters from Roanoke
that called for a reply — ^and, when I got your message from
D. R. Williams, I told him to say to you (what I understood
he had expressed) that you were two letters in my debt. Your
letter has sunk the barometer of my spirits to a low ebb. It
has not been very high of late. 'Time and chance, which
happen unto all men, ' have not left me out of their visitations.
Unconnected, unconsuUed and betrayed, I still wage a feeble
war against that horde of upstart patriots who are ruining our
common country: but it requires an unceasing recurrence to
the principles and motives, by which I am actuated, to sustain
me in the imequal conflict; a conflict where more is to be
apprehended from the barrenness of the country, from thirst
and famine, than from the shafts of the Enemy. "'
Exactly how the estrangement of Nicholson from
Randolph came about we are tmable to say. We only
know that the War of 1812 produced a passing coolness
in the relations of Randolph and Macon as well as those
of Randolph and Nicholson. ' * I cannot account for the
coldness with which you say he treated you, or his not
staying at your house while in Baltimore, '* Macon wrote
to Nicholson of Randolph in 1815.^ On the other hand
we find Randolph complaining in a letter to Dr. Dudley
that Nicholson had not called upon him when he passed
through Baltimore. ^ (a) There is every reason to believe
that no real termination of the friendship was ever eflFected
and that, if the life of Nicholson had not been cut off when
it was, the intercourse between him and Randolph would
have been as completely renewed as that between Macon
and Randolph was. We need no better confirmation of
this assertion than a letter which Randolph wrote to his
niece after the death of Nicholson :
« Georgetown, Dec. 20, 181 1, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
«Feb. I, 1815, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong,
i Baltimore, Oct. 13, 18 14, Letters toa Y, R,, 162.
Randolph as a Man 59i
"Mrs. Nicholson (the widow of Joseph H. N., late of our
House) was here on a short visit to her sister, ** he said, **and
Mr. Frank Key pressed me to dine with her in Georgetown at
his house — ^the farthest off of any in the place. It was one of
those cases where it was impossible to decline the invitation.
The consequences were in such weather unavoidable. I had
known Mr. and Mrs. N. intimately many years ago. She
was then young and affluent. At present, her circumstances
are narrow, but she bears all her bereavement with a noble
fortitude. She was very much affected at meeting me, and
so was I also."' (a)
So far as we know, no letters from Randolph to Joseph
Clay are in existence; but there can be no doubt that
his relations with Clay were as affectionate as his relations
with Nicholson. When he heard that Clay had been
stricken with the illness which resulted in his death, he
wrote to Dr. Dudley, who was then in Philadelphia: "I
shall be on thorns until the arrival of the next mail'*;*
and, a few days later, he wrote to Dr. Dudley: '*I leave
you to judge of the state of my feelings when I tell you
that I rode 30 miles through the rain yesterday for the
sake of hearing of Mr. Clay's situation, and fotmd no
letter from you."^ A few days more, and the afflicting
intelligence reached Randolph, through Dr. Brocken-
brough, that Clay was dead.
'*It'' (Dr. Brockenbrough's letter), he told Dudley,
"dropped from my hands as if I had touched a living firebrand.
I cannot tell you what I feel. I could not, if I knew myself;
but I do not. I am stupefied; I do not know what I am about.
I will try and write again tomorrow. Say to Mrs. Clay what
I could not say if I were with her; I could only wring her hand
and mingle my tears with hers. "^
' Washington, Feb. 14, 1823, Bryan MSS.
> Mr. Brace's, Halifax, Aug. 25, 181 1, LeUers toaY, R., 98.
* Charlotte C. H., Sept. 2, 181 1, Id., 99.
4 Roanoke, Sept. 8, 181 1, Id., 102.
592 John Randolph of Roanoke
In the Diary, the name of Clay is associated with these
words: "Died Monday, July 26, 181 1, *Quis desideHo sit
modus tain cart capitis/ * "
But with no friend was Randolph on easier or more
familiar terms than with James M. Gamett, of Essex
County, Va., who was a member of the House of Repre-
sentatives from 1805 to 1809, and one of his inflexible
adherents. ' * Mine ancient, ' 'Randolph fondly called him
in a letter to Tazewell. ' Indeed so hearttelt and informal
was the intercourse between Randolph and Gamett that
it is for that very reason perhaps that the numerous letters
from the former to the latter, which are still in existence,
are not more important than they are. In other words,
Randolph brought to his letters to Gamett a spontaneous,
careless flow of feeling which, while very attractive so far
as it goes, does not cover any considerable variety of
topics, (a) Nothing, however, could be more affectionate
than the terms in which the two friends address each
other during the long period of their intimacy.
**Our friendship," Randolph wrote on one occasion, "com-
menced soon after he took his seat in Congress, and has con-
tinued uninterrupted by a single moment of coolness or alien-
ation during three and twenty years, and very trying times,
political and otherwise. I take a pride in naming this gentle-
man among my steady, uniform and unwavering friends. In
Congress he never said an unwise thing or gave a bad vote. '**
'*One whom I love,*' is the way in which Randolph
described Gamett in a letter to Gamett himself.^
More like the love of a woman for a man or a woman,
than of a man for a man was that which Randolph and
Nathaniel Macon bore for each other. It began during
the Sixth Congress, and never ended so long as they lived.
' Mar. 8, 1826, Littleton Waller Tazewell, Jr., MSB.
* Bouldin, 289 (note).
3 Mar. 30, 1812, J. M. Gamett, Jr., MBS.
Randolph as a Man 593
Indeed, as Randolph's ancestors believed that the warrior
still retained his favorite bow in the happy hunting
grounds beyond the grave, so it costs us almost a struggle
to realize that the life-long communion of spirit and con-
viction which marked the lives of these two men could be
dissolved even by death: "Jonathan did not love David
more than I have Randolph, " Macon wrote to Nicholson
during the brief period when he thought it possible that
he might lose his friend and, when we remember that envy
and jealousy are among the most general of all human
passions, we cannot but find something uncommonly
sweet and winning in the luif ailing sympathy and admira-
tion with which Macon drank in all of Randolph's great
oratorical displays. One of Randolph's speeches on the
Yazoo question he pronoimced the most eloquent speech
ever made within the walls of the House. ' In their early
lives, they were both devotees of the Arcadian Republican-
ism which the first election of Jefferson to the Presidency
was expected to establish. Later, after the political
divergences, created by the War of 1812, had come to an
end, they were again brought into harmonious fellowship
by the State-Rights cause. The understanding between
them became as perfect as it had ever been, and finally,
when from advancing years and physical infirmity they
were compelled to hug their fireside at Washington more
closely than they had done in the past, they grew almost
like a husband and wife, who have shared the same
thoughts and feelings so long that, from the ties of habit,
if nothing else, they are indispensable to each other. "I
can't read, " Randolph wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough in
1827, "and my old friend's cough is excited by talking;
so we sit and look at the fire together, and once in half an
hour some remark is made by one or the other. " * About
a year later, he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough: "I go no-
» A. of C, 1809-10, V. I, 735.
* Jan. 12, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 282.
VOL. II — 38
594 John Randolph of Roanoke
where, and see nobody but Mr. Macon. He is so deaf
that he picks up none of the floating small trash in the
Senate, and I am hard put to it to make him hear my
hoarse whispers."' It was during the same year that
Randolph wrote to his niece of Macon: ''He is as pure
and upright a man as lives and the wisest, take him for
all in all, that I ever knew. During a friendship of 30
years, he has steadily gained upon my regard. "" (a)
In his will, executed in 1832, Randolph was still sure
enough of himself, after making various specific bequests
to Macon, to declare that he was "the best, purest and
wisest man " that he had ever known ; an4 this declaration
was but the last repetition of what he had over and over
again said diuing the long years of their intercourse.*
That ** warm-hearted and soimd-headed " man, is his
description of Macon on one occasion.
'*To him,*' Randolph said on another occasion, "may be
applied with more justice than to any man that I have ever
known, not excepting Mr. Wickham, the maxim, nullum
numen abest si sit Prudentia. Johns Hopkins' assurance and
Burr's audacity combined could not have prevailed upon
Macon to invite the latter to dine with him, especially with
the Chief Justice for a guest. The best part of it is {ars est
celare artem) that he seems to be almost indiscreet. It is but
a seeming that gives ten-fold power to the effect of his cau-
tion."^
Subsequently, after Randolph had left Congress forever,
he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough that he had just received
two letters from Macon, '* written evidently in fine spirits."
'*The good old man," he said, '4s amusing himself with
fox-hunting, but is by no means an inattentive or in-
different observer of public affairs. "* (a)
« Dec. 26, 1827, Id., 297.
« Washington, Jan. 12, 1827, Bryan MSS. « Botildin, 212.
^ J. R. to Tazewell, Washington, Feb. 20, 1826, L. W. Tazewell, Jr., MSS.
s Washington, Jan. 28, 1829, Mrs. Gilbert S. Meem MSS.
Randolph as a Man 595
In another letter, the fact is brought to our attention
that Macon, when fox-hunting, experienced some annoy-
ance from the fact that his hounds had a way of deserting
the sport and running oflf after wild turkeys. Despite age
and domestic troubles, of which he had his full share, he
himted both foxes and deer imtil the last. '
Of the domestic troubles, we have an inkling in a shrewd
observation of his prompted by these troubles which
Randolph was in the habit of quoting. Moved by the
burdens which had been imposed upon him by grand-
children, who should have been taken care of by their
own father, he called the attention of Randolph to the
fact that men are the only grandfathers in the whole
range of the animal creation who concern themselves
about their grandchildren.
It is an appropriate thing that the names of these two
friends should have been blended in the name of
"Randolph-Macon College"; even though it has been
hinted that the dual name of the institution owed its
origin to a desire to propitiate the pecuniary favor of
two of the most affluent planters in the Valley of the
Roanoke.
A very good summary of the character of Macon is to
be found in a letter written to Hugh Blair Grigsby by
Mark Alexander, of Mecklenburg Coimty, who served in
Congress with both Randolph and him.
**Mr. Macon was a man of no literary attainments, being
bred in the Revolution. He spoke but little in the latter part
of his life, but always in plain language and to the purpose,
with no pretension to eloquence; but no one ever left the
Senate with a higher reputation for sound judgment and purity
of character — a second George Mason. Mr. Randolph always
spoke of him as the wisest man he ever knew. '** (a)
» J. R. to J. R. Clay, Cronstadt, Sept. 7, 19, 1830, Clay MSS., Libr.
Cong.
• To Hugh Blair Grigsby, July 2, 1876, Herbert F. Hutcheson MSS.
596 John Randolph of Roanoke
Next to the effort of the philosopher Locke to establish
an order of Caciques in South Carolina, we know few
things of the sort more amusing than the coat of arms
which Randolph designed for Macon when he was in
London in 1830, and his comments on it in a letter to
Macon :
**What you say/* he said, "about 'public debt and paper
money and taxes to support their credit* is both pithy and
apropos — ^for I have made a coat of arms for you. The Field,
which is Or, is divided by a cross; Argent in each quarter is a
tobacco plant; the Crest is a plant of Indian com in full bear-
ing— Motto 'suum cuique,' and over the crest — *Hard Money.'
I had the tobacco topped to 8 leaves (4 plants to the lb.), but
the painter and engraver made the stalk of com so like a Cat
Tail of our marshes, and the tobacco so like thistles that I
cancelled the plate and ordered the tradesman to send me a
drawing of each plant from a botanical work before he put
the next in hand. At first, I intended that the Field should be
Gules emblematical of your red hand, but the gold was preferred
in reference to both the mottoes; for, without hard money,
interlopers will feed out of our com crib and chew our tobacco.
I wish they would take only what they can chew. I say * our, '
as one of us the people. *'*
A close friend of both Randolph and Gamett was
Richard Stanford, of North Carolina, who was a member
of the House from 1797 to 18 16. *' Honest Dick, "Ran-
dolph sometimes called him, and he was as sensible as he
was honest, though apparently somewhat eccentric.
"Neither of us, I believe," Gamett wrote to Randolph
immediately after Stanford's death, "ever had or shall have a
more sincere friend, both personally and politically, and the
public never lost a more faithful, conscientious and zealous
servant. His understanding was very far above the estimate
commonly made of it; and we might say of him with truth
what I have scarcely ever known a man of whom the same
» London, Dec. 8, 1830, So. Lit. Mess., Nov. 1856, pp. 382 — 385.
Randolph as a Man 597
could be asserted — ^that no one ever continued so long in
public life less contaminated by its numerous temptations
and corruption. In losing him, I literally feel as if I had lost
a part of myself/''
During Stanford's last illness he was faithfully nursed
by Randolph's servant Jupiter, until he succumbed to his
exhausting vigils, and became ill himself. During the
last night of his friend's existence, Randolph sat up with
him tmtil he died.* Two weeks after Stanford's death,
saddened by it and the recent deaths or estrangement of
other persons, who had been dear to him, Randolph wrote
to Gamett in these terms: "Indeed, for the last fortnight
(it is exactly that length of time since his melancholy and
imtimely end) I have been in a state of depression that
disables me from thinking of anything except a sense of
imhappiness which hangs heavy about my heart. "^
Stanford was one of the friends who clung to Randolph
through all his political vicissitudes, without the slightest
mutation of loyalty. "In him," Randolph wrote to Dr.
George Logan, "I lost the best political friend that I had
left on the floor of Congress. "^ (a)
And Dr. George Logan himself, who served in the
Senate from 1801 to 1807, was also one of Randolph's
friends. He was a grandson of James Logan, the friend
of William Penn and Benjamin Franklin, and resided at
Stenton, the home of his ancestor near Philadelphia.
When Randolph was in Philadelphia, in the winter of
1814-1815, he more than once enjoyed the hospitality of
this historic home, and to its master and mistress he was
truly attached. Once, when sending Ryland Randolph
a letter of introduction to Dr. Logan, he said: "You will
find him and his lady two of the most amiable and well
' Apr. 19, 1 8 16, Theodore Garnett MSS.
« Garland, v. 2, 85.
* Georgetown, April 23, 18 16, Theodore Garnett MSS.
* Georgetown, Apr. 27, 1816.
598 John Randolph of Roanoke
informed people in the world. An excursion to Stenton
will be an agreeable relaxation, as the spring advances. "*
And now that we have been deflected from Washington
to Stenton, we might add that Randolph had another
warm friend in Pennsylvania in the person of David
Parish, one of the wealthiest and most prominent citizens
of Philadelphia. ' * He is a gentleman of great worth and
intelligence,*' is the judgment that he passed upon him
in one of his letters to Dr. Dudley. * Both when Randolph
stopped over in Philadelphia on his way to Morrisania
in 1814 and when he stopped over there on his return to
Virginia, he was the recipient of much hospitable kindness
at the hands of conspicuous Philaddphians ; such as
Parish, Dr. Nathaniel Chapman, a native of Virginia,
and a Philadelphia physician of high repute; T, W.
Francis, Dr. Logan and others. Parish had a home at
Ogdensburg on the St. Lawrence as well as in Philadelphia,
and, on one occasion, Randolph wrote to him playfully:
' * Save me an island in the St. Lawrence of about 300 acres.
I mean actually to take a farm there and become one of
your subjects. "^ In the same letter, he told Parish that
he would like to know whether his neighbor, Charles
Kahn, had received a few twists of chewing tobacco which
he had sent him for a Mr. Yard, and that he hoped that
Parish himself had received his ** Virginian Champagne " —
whatever that was; brandy or whiskey, we shrewdly
suspect.
It was when Randolph was in Philadelphia in the win-
ter of 1814-1815 that he had a sharp encoimter with the
Abb6 Correa, the Portugese Minister to the United States,
who had been so incautious at dinner as to use language
which Randolph construed into a reflection upon Virginia.
On this occasion Randolph is supposed to have been rather
« Georgetown, Mar. 17, 1816, Maine Hist. Soc.
'Letters to a Y. R., Ii8.
« Washington, Jan, 23, 18 16, Beverley D. Tucker MSS.
Randolph as a Man 599
worsted, * with the result that, afterwards, when he called
at the house in Washington of Walsh, the newspaper
editor, with whom Correa lived, his penetrating voice
was heard in the parlor by Mrs. Walsh saying to the
servant at the door, "Mind that card is for Mr. Walsh.
I do not call on Ministers who board out. " *
It was when Randolph was a guest of David Parish in
1815 that George Ticknor met him for the first time, and
received the impressions, as much the result of previous
prejudice as of actual knowledge, which have come down
to us in these words :
"I dined today with Mr. Parish a banker and a man of
fortune. He is a bachelor and lives in a style of great splendor.
Everything at his table is of silver and this not for a single
course or for a few persons, but through at least three courses
for twenty. The meat and wines corresponded; the servants
were in full livery with epaulets and the dining room was
sumptuously furnished and hung with pictures of merit. But
what was more to me than his table, or his fortune, John Ran-
dolph is his guest for some weeks. The instant I entered the
room my eyes rested on his lean and sallow physiognomy.
He was sitting and seemed hardly larger or taller than a boy
of 15. He rose to receive me as I was presented and towered
half a foot above my own height. This disproportion arises
from the singular deformity of his person. His head is small
and until you approach him near enough to observe the pre-
mature and unhealthy wrinkles that have furrowed his face,
you would say that it was boyish, but as your eye turns towards
his extremities everything seems to be unnaturally stretched
and protracted. To his short and meagre body are attached
long legs which instead of diminishing grow larger as they
approach the floor until they end in a pair of feet broad and
large, giving his whole person the appearance of a sort of
pjrramid. His arms are the coimterfeit of his legs; they rise
from small shoulders which seem hardly equal to the burden,
« Tlie Centenary of the Wistar Party, by Hampton L. Carson, 12.
*Life, etc,, of Geo, Ticknor, v. i, 16.
6oo John Randolph of Roanoke
are drawn out to a disproportionate length above the elbow
and to a still greater length below; and at last are terminated
by a hand heavy enough to have given the supernatural blow
to William of Deloraine, and by fingers which might have
served as a model for those of the Goblin page. In his phys-
iognomy there is little to please or satisfy except an eye which
glances on all and rests on none. You observe, however, a
mixture of the white man and the Indian, marks of both being
apparent. His long straight hair is parted on the top and a
portion hangs down on each side, while the rest is carelessly
tied up behind and flows down his back. His voice is shrill
and effeminate and occasionally broken by low tones which
you hear from dwarfs and deformed people. He spoke to me
of the hospitality he had found in Philadelphia and of the
prospect of returning to a comfortless home with a feeling that
brought me nearer to him for the moment and of the illness of
his nephew Tudor and the hopes that it had blasted with a
tenderness and melancholy which made me think better of his
heart than I had before. At table he talked little, but ate and
smoked a great deal."'
Other Northern men, with whom Randolph was con-
nected by a tie of genuine friendship were John Langdon,
of New Hampshire, Josiah Quincy, and Rufus King.
Langdon was President of Marache's Club, where the
members of Randolph's mess boarded, when Congress
was still sitting in Philadelphia; and for him Randolph
cherished a high degree of respect and affection.
**I subscribe to your opinion unequivocally of the North-
eastern character," he once wrote to Nicholson. **John
Langdon yet redeems that people in my eyes. There is at
least one righteous man amongst them, and, did we draw our
opinions from a knowledge of their yeomanry, instead of that
wretched sample of priests and pettifoggers who have con-
trived to wriggle themselves to the surface, how different might
be our estimate of their worth !"^
» Life, Letters 6f Journals of Geo. Ticknor, v. i, 27.
* Bizarre, Nov. 8, 1805, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 6oi
Some 15 months or so later, he wrote to Nicholson:
** Since my last, I have had letters from Bryan and the old
President of Marache's. They both speak of you as you could
wish. Mr. Langdon writes : * You say that our mutual friend,
Judge Nicholson, is with you. Pray shake him by the hand
for me. When I think of Marache's Club (which I often do),
immediately are presented to my view a Macon, a Nicholson
and other worthy members, now employed in our country's
service, and in whose talents and integrity I have the fullest
confidence. I should have the greatest happiness in taking
you all by the hand.' God bless the old veteran! If ever
nature formed an honest man, he is one. "' (a)
Nothing but the old grating conflict of sectional aims
and sympathies kept Randolph and Quincy from being
the fastest of friends. The correspondence between them
and the feelings, which were entertained about Randolph
by Quincy's sons, Edmund and Josiah, make it clear that
the two men had a natural affinity for each other. The
manner, in which they became friends, has been narrated
by Quincy in these words :
**I had no predilection for John Randolph, and liked not
the idea of taking a man so fickle, wayward and overbearing
as a sort of leader. However, I acceded to the policy of my
friends during the first session, and was true to it. The first
struggle was to get Macon of North Carolina, one of Ran-
dolph's friends, into the Speaker's Chair, which was effected
with some diflBculty, to his great joy and the annoyance
of the friends of the Administration. Macon immediately
appointed Randolph chairman of the Committee of Ways and
Means, for which place, had Jefferson's friends been successful,
they had selected Barnabas Bidwell, of Massachuestts. I
was placed upon the same committee, which gave me an oppor-
tunity of a personal acquaintance with Randolph, which re-
sulted in as much intimacy as was practicable between me
and a Southern man, haughty and wedded to Southern
« Georgetown, Feb. 15, 1807, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
6o2 John Randolph of Roanoke
supremacy, and who made no concealment of his want of
general sympathy for Northern men and Northern interests.
Towards me personally, his manners were polite in the extreme,
and, during our whole political life, nothing ever occurred
between us which was not of the most agreeable and friendly
character. Our general views concerning Jefferson and his
party were, for the most part, coincident, and in debate we
seldom came in collision.'*'
Edmund Quincy tells us that it would be difiBcult to
imagine two men more dissimilar in character and opinions
than Randolph and Quincy were, and that yet the regard
which they entertained for each other was a very real one, *
In the correspondence between them, it is dear enough
that Randolph, though a slave-holder and an anti-Feder-
alist, was disposed to bestow upon Quincy a measure of
cordial friendship which the latter, with his sectional and
partisan prejudices, was unable altogether to reciprocate.
On one occasion, Mrs. Quincy asked her husband how it
had happened that Randolph had referred, in a highly
complimentary manner, to the speeches delivered by
Harmanus Bleecker and James Emott, of New York, both
Federalists, in a debate in the House, and yet had made
no mention of his speech in the same debate. Quincy's
reply betrays some little amour propre.
**As to his studied compliments to Bleecker and Emott,
and his silence with regard to me, of which [Isaac P.] Davis
spoke," he replied, "I never troubled myself to inquire the
reason, or noticed the fact, as I never deemed him either the
dispenser of fame or the criterion of character."^
Randolph and he, Quincy further said, however, were
upon friendly and confidential terms, as far as it was
possible to be so with a man so wayward and versatile
' Life of Josiah Quincy ^ 94.
» Id., 266.
* Id., 304.
Randolph as a Man 603
in his friendships and enmities as he had shown himself.
Nor did Quincy fail to say that he had seen no evidence
of any disposition on the part of Randolph not to do
justice to him. If there was any, he was inclined to think
that it was due to the fact that, next to the name of
Timothy Pickering, his name was the most obnoxious to
the Southern States. There was really no reason why
this letter should have been colored by pique, for, in a
second letter to his wife, Quincy, in touching upon the
idea which she had formed that Randolph was inclined
to be unjust to him, stated that he had said to Randolph
the day before: "Randolph, have you any news from
Virginia?"; that Randolph had replied: "Yes!" very
significantly, and had put into his hands a letter from a
Mr. Leigh, a gentleman of distinction there, who, in
acknowledging the receipt of a speech by Quincy from
Randolph, had expressed himself upon it in a style very
far too flattering for him to repeat; and that Randolph
had evidently seemed gratified, although he did not say
a word except, " That man's opinion is worth somethings
Quincy.''^
But it was the kind attentions paid by Quincy to
Tudor, when Tudor was at Cambridge, that implanted in
Randolph's breast a sentiment of lasting friendship for
him. Not only did Quincy take Tudor on from Wash-
ington to Cambridge, when the young man became a
matriculate of that institution, but he secured for him the
privilege of living in the home, and under the immediate
eye, of President Kirkland.* He even undertook to keep
up an oversight of Tudor's pecuniary outlays — a task
which proved by no means a sinecure; for while the boy
was not irregular in his habits, and soon acquired the
reputation of being a brilliant student, he was somewhat
profuser in his expenditures, especially in the gratifi-
» Life of Quincy t 304.
» Id,, 267.
6o4 John Randolph of Roanoke
cation of what Joseph Bryan called the love for the
smack of the whip, than his circtimstances really war-
ranted. '
Quincy has been the means of preserving for us some
of the phrases in which Randolph had such a happy way
of hitting off his ideas, however intemperate. Freedom
of commerce and navigation was never advocated in
more sweeping terms than it was by Randolph, if what
Jacob Lewis told Quincy at a dinner party in New York
about a conversation that had taken place between Ran-
dolph and one of the Departmental Heads at Washington
is to be believed :
**He who carries away the produce of my plantation,"
declared Randolph, **is like him who blacks my shoes; so long
as he does it in the best manner, and at the cheapest rate, I
employ him; but, if another will do either upon more advan-
tageous terms, be he foreigner or native, the other must and
ought to lose his employment. "*
Our thanks are also due to Quincy for bringing to our
knowledge what was thought of Randolph by Sir Augustus
Foster, the British Minister at Washington at the begin-
ning of the War of 1812.
**This, however, I will tell you, '* Sir Augustus observed in a
letter which he wrote to Quincy some six years after Ran-
dolph's death. '*That I have a foible for your division of the
country of Transatlantidis; that is, for New England, which
I look upon as nearly as much superior to the districts south
of the Susquehanna as old England is to Hungary or Sicily.
Randolph once told me that slaves were necessary to form a
gentleman; but Randolph knew little of Connecticut and
Massachusetts, and would have made an excellent Russian
nobleman."^
' Life of Quincy, 342.
« Id., 76.
» Turin, July 18, 1839, Id., 462.
Randolph as a Man 605
When Quincy read these words, he doubtless did not
forget those other words which Randolph had written to
him a year or so after Sir Augustus had shaken the dust
of Transatlantidis from his feet, and gone back to Eng-
land: **The curse of slavery, however, — an evil daily
magnifying, great as it already is^mbitters many a
moment of the Virginian landholder who is not duller
than the clod beneath his feet. " '
And, if he had ever heard what Randolph had said of
Sir Augustus in a letter to Rufus King, we may be sure
that he had not forgotten that. **It seems to me, " said
Randolph, * * that the various administrations of the British
Government fell into the error of supposing that narrow
instructions would cure the defect of narrow understand-
ings when they sent us such men as Merry and Erskine
and Foster, who, although a good fellow, was no Solomon,
you know. "*
In the correspondence between Sir Augustus and Quincy
we also find a very extraordinary tribute to the singular
influence exerted in the House by Randolph's peculiar
methods of parliamentary warfare, which would have
still more interest for us, if it had been accompanied by
just a little fuller recognition of the fact that to Quincy,
at any rate, Randolph's relations were always those of
heartfelt and sincere respect, and, so far as the mutual
repulsions of their several environments would permit,
of affection :
" Poor Randolph ! America could well have spared a better
man. In a highly civilized state of society, and possessing a
cultivated intellect, he had the temper and spirit of his savage
ancestress, Pocahontas. His tomahawk was continually in
his hand, and his scalping-knife ever hung at his side. His
warfare was never of the regular, but always of the partisan,
character. Enemies he could not destroy he never failed to
» Richm., Mar. 22, 181 4, Life of Quincy, 350.
* Roanoke, Nov. 5, 1818, Life, etc., of Rufus King, by King, v. i, 167-168,
6o6 John Randolph of Roanoke
cripple. Those he could not conquer, he was apt to leave
skinned alive. Before his death, his eccentricities had become
so great that he was thought by many to be deranged. But
peace to his ashes. "'
In addition to the letters written by Randolph to
Quincy on political topics, from which we have made free
extracts in a preceding chapter, there are two others of a
different character, which we do not feel that we can pass
over or even abridge, except slightly. The second of the
two letters is the last that Quincy ever received from
Randolph, and we agree with Edmund Quincy in thinking
that its liveliness, wit and pathos make it a fit conclusion
of their correspondence :
(I)
"It would require an essay to answer your inquiries; how-
ever, I will try what can be done within the compass of a letter.
Before the Revolution, the lower coimtry of Virginia, pierced
for more than a hundred miles from the seaboard by ntmierous
bold and navigable rivers, was inhabited by a race of planters
of English descent, who dwelt on their principal estates on the
borders of these noble streams. The proprietors were gener-
ally well educated, — some of them at the best schools of the
mother country; the rest at William and Mary, then a semi-
nary of learning under able classical masters. Their habita-
tions and establishments, for the most part spacious and
costly, in some instances displayed taste and elegance. They
were the seats of hospitality. The possessors were gentlemen;
better-bred men were not to be found in the British dominions.
As yet party spirit was not. This fruitful source of mischief
had not then poisoned society. Every door was open to those
who maintained the appearance of gentlemen. Each planter
might be said, almost without exaggeration, to have a harbor
at his door. Here he shipped his crop (tobacco), mostly on
his own account, to London, Bristol, or Glasgow, and from
those ports received every article of luxury or necessity (not
raised by himself) which his household and even his distant
' Life of Quincy, 459.
Randolph as a Man 607
quarters required. For these, a regtilar order was made out
twice a year. You may guess at the state of things when a
bill of exchange on London for half a crown was sometimes
drawn to pay for a dinner at the ordinary. Did a lady want a
jewel new-set, or a gentleman his watch cleaned, the trinket
was sent home. Even now the old folks talk of * going home to
England. '
" Free living, the war, docking entails (by one sweeping act
of Assembly), but chiefly the statute of distributions, under-
mined these old establishments. Bad agriculture, too, con-
tributed its share. The soil of the coimtry in question, except
on the margin of the rivers, where it was excellent, is (originally)
a light, generous loam upon a sand; once exhausted, it is dead.
Rice never constituted an object of culture with us. The
tide swamps — a mine of wealth in South Carolina — here pro-
duce only miasma. You will find some good thoughts on this
head, and on the decay of our agriculture generally in our
friend J. T.'s (John Taylor, of Caroline) whimsical, but
sensible, work, Arator.
"Unlike you, we had a church to pull down, and its destruc-
tion contributed to swell the general ruin. The temples of
the living God were abandoned, the glebe sold, the University
pillaged. The old mansions, where they have been spared by
fire (the consequence of the poverty and carelessness of their
present tenants), are fast falling to decay; the families, with a
few exceptions, dispersed from St. Mary's to St. Louis; such
as remain here sunk into obscurity. They, whose fathers rode
in coaches, and drank the choicest wines now ride on saddle-
bags, and drink grog, when they can get it. What enterprise
or capital there was in the country retired westward; and, in
casting your eyes over the map of Virginia, you must look
between the North Mountain and a line drawn through Peters-
burg, Richmond and Alexandria for the population and wealth
of the State. The western district is almost a wilderness.
The eastern tract, from the falls of the great rivers to the
shore of the Chesapeake, — the region above all others in
United America the best adapted for conmierce — becomes
yearly more deserted. Deer and wild turkeys are nowhere
so plentiful in Kentucky as near Williamsburg. I say, 'the
6o8 John Randolph of Roanoke
shore of the Chesapeake, ' because oiir Easlem Shore (the two
counties that lie beyond that bay) must be excluded from this
description. There, the old Virginian character is yet (I am
told) to be foimd in its greatest purity; although before the
Revolution it was a poor, despised region. Here are the
descendants of those men who gave an asylum to Sir W. Berk-
eley during Bacon's rebellion. The land, although thin, bears
a good price, and is inhabited by a hospitable, unmixed people.
On this, the western shore, land within two hoiu's' sail of Nor-
folk may be bought for one-half the money which the same
quality would conmiand one hundred and fifty miles from
tide-water. The present just, necessary, and glorious war has
not, as you may suppose, served to enhance its price. Per-
haps, after all, you may say that I reassert a fact, when asked
for the cause. The country is certainly unhealthy; more so
than formerly; but this is only one of the causes of its depopu-
lation. Bears and panthers have within a few years made
their appearance in the neighborhood of the Dragon and
Dismal Swamps.
**You are once more enjoying the *uda mobUibiis pomaria
rivis* of Quincy. When you count over the olentis uxores
mariti (if the dignity of a merino will brook such an epithet),
and reckon your lambs before yeaning, you are not likely to
be interrupted by any unpleasant Transatlantic recollections.
Do you know that you have written a letter of three pages
without a syllable on the subject of 'Foreign Relations'?
This bespeaks the quiet of the heart within. You and I, whom
the delators of the post-office are ready to swear they have
detected in carrying on a treasonable correspondence, to be
writing about 'old times' that 'are changed' — 'old manners
gone' — tobacco and wool! . . . The smaller critics would
perhaps remind me that Horace's flock were of the hairy, or
no-wool breed, and that they must have been goats. But that
is by no means a necessary consequence. Did not Mr. Jeffer-
son import sheep without wool (sent him, I presimie, by some
brother savant of the Academy of Lagado), and does Captain
Lemuel Gulliver give us any reason to doubt that in point of
antiquity that illustrious people flourished long before the
age of Augustus? This valuable breed of sheep, although
Randolph as a Man 609
destitute of wool, had a double allowance of horns, — ^there
being four to each head, two of them projecting like the fabled
unicorn's. With these the ram actually tore out the entrails
of a poor child in Washington, and killed it. (See Malthus
on Population.) There is an apparent levity in this letter
which is foreign to my real temper, at this moment especially.
I do but mock myself. * It may deceive all hearts save that
within. * If you see Tudor, tell him his brother is better, much
better.**'
(2)
'* Your letter was * right welcome unto me,' as my favorite
old English writers say or sing, but much more welcome was
the bearer. of it. Son of yours, even with far less claims from
his own merit than this gentleman obviously possesses, shall
never be shown the *cauld shoulther.' I hope that you'll
pardon my using the Waverley tongue, which I must fear bodes
no good to the good old English aforesaid, and which I shall
therefore leave to them that like it, — ^which I do not, out of
its place, — and not always there. In short, I have not catched
the literary 'Scotch fiddle,* and, in despite of Dr. Blair, do
continue to believe that Swift and Addison understood their
own mother tongue as well as any Sawney, *benorth tha'
Tweed.' Nay, further, not having the fear of the Edinburgh
Reviewers before my eyes, I do not esteem Sir Walter to be a
poet, or the Rev. Dr. Chalmers a pulpit orator. But, as I do
not admire Mr. Kean, I fear that my reputation for taste
is, like my earthly tabernacle, in a hopeless state.
**The fuss made about that mountebank, who is the very
fellow, although not *periwig-pated,* that Shakespeare de-
scribes, has, I confess, disgusted me not a little. What are we
made of to take sides in the factions of the circus (green or
blue), and to doat upon the professions of 'feeling* and 'senti-
ment* and 'broken-heartedness' from the lips or pen of a
fellow whose vocation it is to deal in those commodities, — ^who
has a stock of them in his travelling pack, like an Irish fortune-
hunter on a visit to a 'young ladies' seminary* of learning,
•
» Roanoke, Va., July i, 1814, Lije of Quincy, 353.
70L. II — 39
6io John Randolph of Roanoke
anything but good? For my part, like Burchell in the Vicar
of Wakefield, I say nothing but cry, 'Pudge!'
** By the common law, stage-players come tmder the descrip-
tion and penalties of vagrants and sturdy beggars. To be
sure, Shakespeare was on the stage, and Garrick and Siddons
and Kemble were stage-players; but, you know, exceptio probat
regulam.
** I did not (when I began) intend to have turned the page,
but must do it to say that the stage comes emphatically under
Lord Byron*s sweeping ban and anathema against the world, as
'One wide den of thieves, or — what you will.'
"My right hand has forgot its cunning. With great respect
and every good wish to you and yours, I am, dear sir, your
obedient servant, John Randolph of Roanoke."
**P.S. I often think on Auld Lang Syne (more Scotch).
Though 'seas between us broad have rolled* since those da3rs, I
have a perfect recollection of most of them. I can see you
now just as you were when a certain great man that now is was
beginning to be; but why revive what is better forgot? One
thing, however, I will revive (what I shall never forget), your
kindness to my poor boy, — 'the last of the family* — ^for I am
nothing; it will soon be utterly extinct. He lies in Chelten-
ham graveyard. I bought the ground. I need not say that it
was my first pilgrimage in England. As you go from the Town
to the Spring, he lies on the right hand ... of the pathway
through the churchyard, leaving the church on your left."'
Strange as the fact may seem, Randolph not only
acquired a friendly footing with Quincy, but even with
such a rabid Federalist as Timothy Pickering. In one of
his letters to his wife, written about the time of the Com-
pensation Bill, Pickering said: "Mr. Randolph is the
most uncommon man I ever knew. He has learning,
sagacity, and a vivid imagination, with an extraordinary
memory." Notwithstanding his discursiveness, he was
< Washington, Feb. 20, 1826, Life of Quincy, 421.
Randolph as a Man 6ii
listened to with attention, Pickering further said, * 'because
there are some profound thoughts, some biting satire,
and some strokes of humor throughout his discotu'ses. " '
So truly cordial did the intercourse between Pickering
and Randolph become that Pickering presented Randolph
with a proof impression of his profile drawn by Saint
M6min, and a copy of an engraving of his portrait which
had just been taken in New York by Waldo, and received
in twm from Randolph the last copy that he had of an
engraving which had been taken of his miniature
painted by Wood in 1809.' Far more valuable, doubt-
less, to Pickering than his gift was the tribute paid to
him by Randolph in a speech delivered in the House on
Jan. 30, 1817:
"No man in the United States,** Randolph said, "has been
more misunderstood, no man more reviled, and that is a bold
declaration for tne to make, than Alexander Hamilton, unless,
perhaps, my friend, the venerable member from Massachusetts,
who generally sits in that seat (pointing to the seat generally
occupied by Colonel Pickering), and whom, whatever may be
said of him, all will allow to be an honest man. The other day,
when on the compensation question, he was speaking of his
own situation, when his voice faltered and his eyes filled at the
mention of his own poverty, I thought I would have given the
treasures of Dives himself for his feelings at that moment; for
his poverty, Mr. Speaker, was not the consequence of idleness,
extravagance or luxury, nor of the gambling spirit of specu-
lation. It was honorable poverty after a life spent in a
laborious service, and in the highest offices of trust xmder
Government, during the war of Independence as well as tmder
the present constitution. Sir, I have not much, although it
would be grave affectation in me to plead poverty; whatever
I have, such as it is, I would freely give to the venerable gentle-
man, if he will accept it, to have it said over my grave, as it
may be said with truth over his, *Here lies the man who was
' Sketch of Randolph by Mrs. Donaldson, Mrs. Norman James MSS.
6i2 John Randolph of Roanoke
favored with the confidence of Washington and the enmity of
his successor."" (a)
It is not easy to speak of Quincy in connection with
Randolph without also speaking of Harmanus Bleecker,
who served in the House from 1811 to 1813, and was
appointed by Van Buren in 1839 Charg6 d* Affaires at the
Hague, where, when he was first presented at Court, his
Dutch, derived from the classic models of Dutch Litera-
ture, won this remarkable compliment from the King of
Holland: "Sir, you speak better Dutch than we do in
Holland."* After Bleecker and Quincy were thrown
together in the House, they became intimate friends, and
to such a degree was the good opinion, in which Bleecker
was held by Quincy, shared by Randolph that, on one
occasion, the latter wrote to Quincy: '* Bleecker is, indeed,
all that you say of him and more,''^ Many letters passed
between Randolph and Bleecker, a considerable number
of which we have reason to believe are still in existence,
but, after the most diligent inquiry, we have been unable
to obtain access to them. A portrait of Randolph, pre-
sented by Bleecker to the State of Virginia, is one of the
most attractive of all the portraits that were ever taken
of him.
And, before leaving the State of New York, we should
also mention the fact that for few men in public life did
Randolph cherish a profounder respect, or a more cordial
regard, than he did for Rufus King. He spent the evening
with King at Jamaica, on Long Island, after the famous
race between Eclipse and Henry, and his favorable opinion
of him was so much strengthened by this incident that,
in referring to the debates on the Missouri Compromise,
in which King had won such conspicuous distinction, he
« Sketch of Randolph,
• Life of Quincy t 306; Lanman's Diet, of Congress , 42
» Richm., Dec. 11, 1813, Life of Quincy^ 341.
Randolph as a Man 613
said: '*Ah, sir! only for that unfortunate vote on the
Missouri Question, he would be our man for the Presi-
dency. He is, Sir, a genuine English gentleman of the
old school, just the right man for these degenerate times;
but, alas! it cannot be.'*' In Washington, King and
Randolph were often the recipients of social civilities at
each other's hands; and, at Randolph's request. King
seems to have had his portrait painted by Wood for Ran-
dolph. The letter, written by Randolph to King on this
subject, is a good example of the profound deference with
which King, who was a much older man than Randolph,
was always treated by him, both because of the difference
in their ages and because of the admiration which Ran-
dolph entertained for his character and abilities :
** If my memory does not deceive me," Randolph said, "you
made me a sort of promise last winter to give Mr. Wood a
sitting for me. Will you pardon the reminding you of this
engagement by one who is too sensible of the kindness he re-
ceived from you not to wish for a memorial of him by whom it
was shown. Your portrait will make a most suitable compan-
ion for that of the Chief Justice, who was good enough to sit
for me; and I mention this to show you that you will not be in
company that should disgrace you.
**0n public affairs I dare not touch lest I should subject
myself to the imputation cast on the coxcomb who presimied to
address Hannibal on the art of war.
** Wishing you an agreeable session of Congress, I am, with
the most profound respect, dear sir, your obliged and obedient
servant, John Randolph of Roanoke."*
In another letter, Randolph asked King to order a lot
of apple, peach, pear, plum, cherry, nectarine and apricot
trees for him from two nurserjnnen in King's neighbor-
hood, named Prince ; and also some rare evergreens. This
» The New Mirror^ v. 2, 43.
* Roanoke, Dec. 8, 1817, Life of Rufus King, by King, v. i, 83.
6i4 John Randolph of Roanoke
is all commonplace enough, but when was such a simple
request ever more gracefully introduced :
"My letters," he said, "although they have bfeen neither
prolix nor numerous, may perhaps remind you of the parody
humorously ascribed to Lord Motmt Morris, in the once
famous probationary Ode of the Rolliad. Otir intercourse has
been, indeed, on terms of 'Hibernian reciprocity/ A favor is
asked, and not only graciously accorded, but enhanced by the
very valuable information, which it is kindly as well as oblig-
ingly made the occasion of communicating to one no longer in
the world, or connected with affairs, or with public men, (even
by relations of hostiHty). But you, my dear Sir, have too long
and deep experience of man and his nature not to know that
this is the very way in which a 'pauvre hotUeux* may be con-
verted into a sturdy beggar. To release you however from
my importunity, let me cut short my tale.""
The fruit trees produced some palatable fruit for us too
in the form of another letter from Randolph to King, in
which they are mentioned :
"On my return home, a few days ago from the falls of the
Roanoke," Randolph said, "I was most agreeably saluted by
your letter of the 20th of October, which arrived a few minutes
before me. The desire to thank you for it, to express some-
what of my sense of your kindness (I can find no other word),
and to keep myself alive in the memory of one, who has dis-
tinguished me by attentions that I can never forget, dictate
this reply; for I can readily conceive, having in such matters
'some shallow spirit of judgment,' that, immersed as you are in
affairs, you could most readily dispense with letters of compli-
ment, written sometimes out of mere idleness, but oftener from
sheer vanity; as silly people pester great folks with cards,
taking care to make a prompt display of such as they may
receive from the aforesaid great folks, and with equal care
keeping out of sight the names of humbler visitors. But,
indeed, I do myself injustice to term mine letters of compli-
» Roanoke, Sep. 26, 1818, Life, etc., of Rufus King, by King, v. i, 164-165.
Randolph as a Man 615
ment. They are something better in design, altho' they may
be worse in execution.
"I have ofttimes thought it a weakness in Government to
restrain their envoys &c. within such narrow limits as their
instructions commonly afford. Sure I am that, in private life,
this mode of management will not do. If they would be more
particular in selecting the agent, and less so in drawing the
instructions, I am inclined to think matters would go on better.
This jealousy must arise from a fear that the foreign court will
gain over the Minister, or from that ridiculous passion 'for too
much regulation', against which a certain acquaintance of ours
declaims in his writings, whilst his practice affords only ex-
amples to the contrary. It is the misfortune of this 'illustrious
man' that his public conduct should invariably run counter to
his avowed principles. This itch for regulating everything,
this passion for details is one of those weaknesses, from which
great minds are not always exempt, in which little ones can
always imitate them. The great Frederic was not entirely free
from this infirmity; and I have been sometimes led to think
that [when] Paul of Russia was regulating knee-buckles and
shoe-ties, and Mr. Jefferson every detail of the streets and
public buildings at Washington, from the ornaments of the
Senate Chamber to the cells in the county jail, each flattered
himself that he was walking in the footsteps of Frederic,
because that wise man chose occasionally to play the fool. . . .
"After this tirade on the subject of instructions, give me
leave to say that I should not have prestimed to fetter Mr.
King with any; neither did I intend it, for I thought the
Princes, whose rival advertisements have stared me in the face
this twelve month, were your only nursery-men, &c. ... It
gives me great satisfaction to hear that Mrs. ICing's health will
enable her to accompany you to Washington; where, after all,
I suspect, is the best winter society on this continent. I wish
you both a pleasant season and should be pleased to enjoy
the pleasure of joining some of your parties this winter; but I
have been gadding abroad all Autumn and must look, or
pretend to look, a little at affairs at home.
"On my excursion to the falls of Roanoke, I fell in with
Macon, whom you will shortly see. His conversation put me
6i6 John Randolph of Roanoke
in mind of public measures which had long since gone out of my
mind, but I did not pick up enough from him to enable me to
add a line upon their subject; under such circumstances, I am
not without hope of obtaining a draught from the fountain-
head.
**Your faithful, humble servant, John Randolph of
Roanoke."*
Of Randolph's relations to his kinsman, Chief Justice
Marshall, with whose portrait he wished the portrait of
King to be mated, we have already said nearly all that
need be said. The fall of the mighty welding hanmaer,
that the Chief Justice brought down from time to time so
sagaciously and fearlessly upon the loose joints of the
National Government, and his provincial vernacular
occasionally jarred for a moment upon Randolph's nerves,
but, throughout his life, on the whole, even his most way-
ward and intolerant impulses were held completely captive
by the powerful mind, the kind heart, and the native
simplicity of Marshall ; and it may well be regretted that,
Marshall left behind him, we believe, no oral or written
word lastingly to authenticate the cordial regard for Ran-
dolph which his conduct never failed to exhibit whenever
there was any reason for its manifestation. In one of
Randolph's letters to Dr. Brockenbrough, the names of
John Marshall and Alexander Hamilton are coupled in
such a way as to afford another proof of the fact that
Randolph gave to ability its just due, no matter how
partisan the medium through which he had to examine it.
** I cannot believe it possible,** he said, ** that the Ch. J. can
vote for the present incumbent. To say nothing of his
denunciation of all the most respectable federalists, the
implacable hatred and persecution of this man and his father
of the memory of Alexander Hamilton (the best and ablest man
of his party, who basely abandoned him for old Adams' loaves
» Roanoke, Nov. 5, 1818, Id., v. 6, 167, 168.
Randolph as a Man 617
and fishes), would, I suppose be an insuperable obstacle to the
C. J.'s support of the younger A. When I say the best and
ablest of his party, I must except the Ch. J. himself, who sur-
passed H. in moral worth, and, although not his equal as a
statesman, in point of capacity is second to none. Hamilton
has stood very high in my estimation ever since the contest
between Burr and Jefferson; and I do not envy a certain Ex-P.
or your predecessor, the glory of watching his stolen visits to a
courtezan, and disturbing the peace of his family by their
information. I have a fellow-feeling with H. He was the
victim of rancorous enemies, who always prevail over luke-
warm friends. He died because he preferred death to the
slightest shade of imputation or disgrace. He was not suited
to the country, or the times; and, if he lived now, might be
admired by a few, but would be thrust aside to make room
for any fat- headed demagogue, or dexterous intriguer. His
conduct, too, on the acquisition of Louisiana, proved how
superior he was to the Otises and Quincys, and the whole run of
Yankee f ederaUsts. ' * '
In Delaware, Randolph had a warm friend in Caesar A.
Rodney, who was a member of Congress from 1803 to
1805, and was appointed by Jefferson to the office of
Attorney General. **That good fellow Rodney,*' is the
manner in which he describes him in one of his letters,
after they had served together as managers in the Chase
impeachment case.
In Maryland, he had several intimates besides Joseph
H. Nicholson. One of his friends in that State was Daniel
Murray, of whom he said on one occasion, when chiding
Francis Scott Key for not sending him **a dish of chit-
chat:" '* There's that fine fellow D. M y, whom you
have not once named. " *
Another Maryland friend was Charles Sterrett Ridgeley,
who owned a country place, named Oaklands, near Elk-
ridge Landing, in Howard County, Maryland, to which
» Garland, v. 2, 296
* /d., no.
6i8 John Randolph of Roanoke
Randolph was in the habit of frequently resorting for the
purpose of escaping from the heavy tax imposed upon his
delicate frame by his arduous duties at Washington, and
of enjoying the society of the group composed of Baltimore
and other friends, which Ridgeley had drawn around him:
**That gallant-spirited man, Sterrett Ridgeley," were the
terms in which Randolph spoke of this friend in a letter to
Nicholson, written just after the threatened duel between
Randolph and Eppes had sputtered out, with the usual
effort on each side to refer the first suggestion of the
reconciliation to the other. ' In one letter to Dr. Dudley,
Randolph mentions that Ridgeley had arrived the night
before at Georgetown, to Randolph's "great joy. "^ In
another, he tells Dr. Dudley that he had recently left
"the hospitable mansion" of his friend, Charles Sterrett
Ridgeley. ^ In Randolph's letters to Francis Scott Key
there are numerous references to Ridgeley. In one,
written during the War of 1 812, Randolph says;
**When you see Ridgeley, commend me to him and his
amiable wife. I am really glad to hear that he is quietly at
home instead of scampering along the Bay shore or inditing
dispatches. Our upper country has slid down upon the lower.
Nearly half our people are below the falls; both my brothers
are gone.'*^
Subsequently, when Ridgeley was a candidate for a seat
in the Maryland Legislature, Randolph doubted his fitness
for it ; on alleged grounds, however, that were as creditable
to him as they were discreditable to the public life of which
he was a part. He was sorry, Randolph told Key, to see
their ** noble-spirited friend, Sterrett Ridgeley" engaged
in politics.
* Mar. 3, Nicholson MSB., Libr. Cong.
• Georgetown, Nov. 27, 1812, Letters to a Y, R,, 128.
*June I, 1813, Id., 132.
4 Roanoke, Jul. 17, 1813; Garland, v. 2, 17.
Randolph as a Man 619
"He is truly unfit for public life. Do you ask why? You
have partly answered the question. He is too honest, too
unsuspicious, too deficient in cunning, I would as soon recom-
mend such a man to a hazard table and a gang of sharpers as
to a seat in any deliberative assembly in America."*
All this becomes decidedly plainer when, a little later
on, Randolph, contrasting mentally the tmiversal suffrage
of Maryland with the freehold suffrage of Virginia, and,
going back to his Milton for a phrase, which is even more
significant in our time than it was in Milton's or Ran-
dolph's, says: "Electioneering is upon no very pleasant
footing anywhere, but with you, when the 'base proletarian
rout * are admitted to vote, it must be peculiarly irksome
and repugnant to the feelings of a gentleman. "*
A devoted friendship existed between Francis Scott Key
of Maryland, and Randolph. On Randolph's side, it
fncluded Mrs. Key and her children, to whom he was in
the habit of frequently sending affectionate messages.
Indeed, if any one of Randolph's friends was married, his
friendship for him was almost invariably bestowed upon
all the members of his family also. The interest, however,
that attaches to the correspondence between Randolph
and Key is mainly religious, and a most effective tract
would be a little pamphlet containing the spiritual anxi-
eties, misgivings and doubts which Randolph poured into
the ears of Key, and the soothing and consoling assurances
with which that talented, pure-minded and upright man,
to whom the invisible universe was quite as real as the
visible, sought to bring peace to the agitated mind of his
friend. Better preaching it would be hard to find any-
where than is to be found in one or two of Key's letters
to Randolph; preaching that is all the more effective be-
cause of its lack of professional dogmatism and of its
likeness merely to the quiet conmiimings of the himian
« Roanoke, Sep. 12, 1813, Id., v. 2, 20.
620 John Randolph of Roanoke
soul with itself. If anything could have been sufficient
to make religion a thing of practical helpfulness, solace
and joy to Randolph, instead of an affrighting nightmare,
it might well have been the influence of Key. As early
as Feb. 8, 1811, he wrote to Nicholson that he knew no
man *'more intrinsically estimable than Prank Key."'
Ten years later, after he had been almost as intimate
with Key as a brother, he paid this striking tribute to him
in a letter to Dr. Brockenbrough ; a tribute all the more
striking because the sunshine with which it irradiated
Key is painfully, though poetically, contrasted with the
shadows which encompassed himself:
"Yesterday," he said, ** I was to have dined with Frank Key,
but was not well enough to go. He called here the day before,
and we had much talk together. He perseveres in pressing
on towards the goal, and his whole life is spent in endeavoring
to do good for his unhappy fellow-men. The result is that he
enjoys a tranquillity of mind, a sunshine of the soul, that all
the Alexanders of the earth can neither confer nor take away.
This is a state to which I can never attain. I have made up
my mind to suffer, like a man condemned to the wheel or the
stake. Strange as you may think it, I could submit without a
murmur to pass the rest of my life *on some high, lonely tower,
where I might out- watch the bear with thrice great Hermes,'
and exchange the enjoyments of society for an exemption
from the plagues of life. These press me down to the very
earth, and, to rid myself of them, I would gladly purchase
an annuity, and crawl into some hole where I might commime
with myself, and be still. ''^
Of Edward Lloyd, the brother-in-law of Joseph H.
Nicholson and Francis Scott Key, Randolph wrote
laconically to Nicholson : * * I love the man. " ^
Afterwards, in one of his letters to Randolph, Key
' Babel, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
* Washington, circa, 1821.
»Richm., May 31, 1807, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 621
wrote that Lloyd had told Mrs. Key that Randolph never
wrote to him. ' And this was Randolph's reply, which,
like many other letters, contained more between its lines
than in them:
"Our quondam friend Lloyd, for 'quondam friends are no
rarity with me* — I made this answer at the ordinary at our
court to a gentleman who had returned from Rappahannock
and told me that he had seen some of our 'quondam friends.'
It was casually uttered, but I soon saw how deeply it was felt
by a person at table whom I had not before observed. To
return to Lloyd, he cannot with any show of justice complain
of *my giving him up.' The saddle is on the other horse; he is
a spoiled child of fortune, and testy old bachelors make a poor
hand of himioring spoiled children. Lloyd required to be
flattered, and I would not perform the service. I would hold
no man's regard by a base tenure."* (a)
In one of his letters to Nicholson, Randolph recommends
to his favor a Mr. Sargeant, of Petersburg, Va. He tells
Nicholson that he is an old friend of his, that he is one of
the most agreeable and amiable men that he has ever
known, and is a ** travelled gentleman;" indeed, what we
would now term a ** globe trotter. "^
Closely associated with James M. Gamett in the mind
and life of Randolph, was the celebrated John Taylor of
Caroline, whose residence — Hazelwood — ^was not very
far from Elmwood — Gamett's residence — and was close
to one of the land routes by which Randolph reached
Washington from Roanoke. For the character of Taylor,
as a statesman, he entertained a high degree of respect;
notwithstanding the crabbed and artificial diction which
make his productions anything but easy reading. Espe-
cially was Randolph attracted to Taylor by the fact that
he was one of the nicest and sternest sticklers for the Vir-
» Aug. 30, 1 81 3, Garland, v. 2, 19.
* Id., V. 2, 20.
» Petersburg, Apr. 6, 1805, Nicholson MSS. Libr. Cong.
622 John Randolph of Roanoke
ginia conception of State Sovereignty. He was the author,
besides, under the nom-de-plume of "Arator," of a series
of agricultiu'al essays, which Randolph, as he wrote
Quincy, regarded as sensible, though whimsical. Nor
was Taylor a mere theoretical farmer; as farmers who
desert the plow for the pen are so likely to be ; for, in one
of his letters to Gamett, Randolph, while quite complacent
about the condition of Roanoke, frankly confesses that it
is in no such state of improvement as Hazelwood. With
all his respect for Taylor, the latter's treatise on banking
was too much for his patience :
**I am glad to hear that Arator is not idle," he wrote to
Gamett. "For his book on banking I would not give a far-
thing. My creed on thesubject is so firmly fixed that I would as
soon read the Koran with a view to conversion. For heaven's
sake, get some worthy person (if you decline the task yourself)
to do the second edition into English. I have not the book
about me, nor within reach, but it is a moniunent of the force
and weakness of the human mind; forcible, concise, perspicu-
ous, feeble, tedious, obscure, unintelligible. I remember one
expression: 'inferior superiorities' applied I think to Indian
com.'*'
It was Taylor who wrote on one occasion to Creed
Taylor : * * Bank stock cannot be incarcerated within geo-
graphical bounds ; it flies, like the vulture, towards the
place where its prey is to be found.***
At Hazelwood, after his retirement from Congress,
with Randolph occasionally passing near his home, when
journeying to or from Washington, Taylor was not imlike
an old cavalry horse turned out to grass, when he sees a
squadron of horse coming down the road on the other side
of the pasture fence. Once, when reproached by Taylor
for failing to stop at Hazelwood, Randolph wrote to >iim
« Richm., Feb. 14, 1814, Gamett MSS.
* Nov. 25, 1803; Creed Taylor MSS.
Randolph as a Man 623
that he "had been too much pleased with his reception
at his house ever to pass it willingly. " ' (a)
Three intimate friends of Randolph in the later stages
of his Congressional career were Thomas H. Benton, of
Missouri, James Hamilton, of South Carolina, and Mark
Alexander, of Mecklenburg County, who was a member of
the House from 1819 to 1833. Of the forms that the
friendship between Randolph and Benton assumed, we
have already said enough. After the Randolph-Clay duel,
Randolph, as a token of his appreciation of the good feeling
which Benton had exhibited in connection with it, gave
him a gold seal, which he had had made for him in London,
duly accompanied by a proper crest and family pedigree.
Benton is said to have laughed the crest and pedigree
aside, but the seal he wore until the day of his death. *
The devise, which Randolph made to him in his codicil
executed in 1826 Benton promptly and positively refused
to accept on the ground that he did not feel that he was
entitled to such a benefaction at the expense of Randolph's
heirs. To few persons is the reputation of Randolph more
deeply indebted than to this friend, who knew him well,
and almost invariably presents him to the reader in a
highly amiable light.
The friendship between Randolph and Hamilton really
dated back to one which existed between' their mothers
as early as the American Revolution.^ "He is a noble
fellow,* ' Randolph wrote of Hamilton to Andrew Jackson,
but this was about a year before Jackson issued his Procla-
mation against Hamilton and the other South Carolina
nuUifiers. ^
During the second winter that Mark Alexander, whom
Randolph was in the habit of calling familiarly Mark
« Geoi^etown, April 15, 1810, Mass. Hist. Soc.
« Thos. H. Benton, by Jos. M. Rogers, 65.
sBouldin, i88.
* Charlotte C. H., Nov. 8, 1831, Jackson Papers, v. 79, Libr. Cong.
624 John Randolph of Roanoke
Antony, spent at Washington, he was a member of the
mess which consisted of Randolph, Macon, Benton,
Edwards, Cobb, Tatnall and himself. Edwards, Cobb
and Tatnall were all three warm friends of Randolph, too.
Alexander's room was directly opposite to Randolph's and
a highly confidential and intimate association sprang up
between them. Alexander tells us that he often acted as
Randolph's amanuensis, and frequently ** resorted to his
room, day and night, to hear his conversational powers,
replete with wisdom and instruction." "I am proud to
say," Alexander adds in this interesting letter, **I had
his confidence to the day of his death." In the same
letter, Alexander says of Benton : * * Benton who roomed
near him (Randolph) was always reserved, with no inti-
mate association or friendship, but always master ot the
subject he discussed, and whose lamp never went out at
night until one or two o'clock."'
Quite a different kind of a friend was Stephen H.
Decatur. Yet a tie of genuine friendship seems to have
existed between him and Randolph. Indeed, it was
doubtless partly because of the shock inflicted on him by
the death of Decatur in his duel with Commodore Barron
that Randolph's mind gave way in the year 1820. His
conduct at Decatur's funeral is thus depicted by John
Quincy Adams in his Memoirs: ' * John Randolph was there,
first walking, then backing his horse, then calling for his
phaeton, and lastly crowding up to the vault, as the coffin
was removed into it from the hearse — ^tricksy humors to
make himself conspicuous."' A motion made by Ran-
dolph in the House that it should adjourn, so that its
members could attend Decatur's fimeral — a, motion which
also provided that the members of the House should wear
crape in honor of Decatur's memory — was rejected by the
House; and was again rejected when repeated on the
» July 2, 1876, Letter to Hugh B. Grigsby, Herbert F. Hutcheson MSS.
« Mar. 24, 1820, V. 5, 36.
Randolph as a Man 625
succeeding day; and the same fate befell even a bare
motion by Randolph looking to adjournment simply. »
The House was too much horrified by the details of the
tragic duel to give its approval to any motions of the sort.
In the will, which he executed in 1832, Randolph made
the following bequests to his friend John Wickham :
"To John Wickham, Esq., my best of friends, without mak-
ing any professions of friendship for me, and the best and
wisest man I ever knew, except Mr. Macon, I bequeath my
mare Flora and my stallion Gascoigne, together with the two
old-fashioned double-handled silver cups and two tankards
unengraved — ^the cups are here and the tankards or cans in
Richmond — and I desire that he will have his arms engraved
upon them and at the bottom these words: Trom J. R. of
Roanoke to John Wickham, Esquire, as a token of the respect
and gratitude which he never ceased to feel for unparalleled
kindness, courtesy and services. * ""
This was the effusion of a mind not too much impaired
to remember the indulgence that Wickham had both
generously and wisely accorded to Randolph in connection
with the British debt, which had lowered over his early
life, and of a heart that was quite as slow to ignore a benefit
as it was quick to resent a slight or an indignity.
The home of John Wickham was at Hickory Hill, near
Richmond, and here Randolph was often the guest of a
host whose social charm was not less conspicuous than his
rare abilities and accomplishments. It was of Wickham
that William Wirt wrote these words :
"This gentleman, in my opinion, unites in himself a greater
diversity of talents and acquirements than any other at the
bar of Virginia. He has the reputation, and deserves it, of
possessing much legal science; he has an exquisite and a highly
cultivated taste for polite literature; a genius quick and fertile;
« Mai. 24, 1820, V. 5, 36.
« Bouldin, 212.
VOL. 11—40
626 John Randolph of Roanoke
a style pure and classic; a stream of perspicuous and beautiful
elocution; an ingenuity which no difficulties can entangle and
embarrass, and a wit whose vivid and brilliant coruscations
can gild and decorate the darkest subject. His statements, his
narrations, his arguments are all as transparent as the light of
day. He reasons logically, and declaims Very handsomely; his
popularity is still in its flood, and he is justly considered as an
honor and an ornament to his profession."'
As usual, Wirt paints with too flaring a brush, but, in
this instance, he little exceeded the sober truth. One
specimen of Wickham's wit was too good not to stick in
Randolph's memory, and to be reported by him to Andrew
Jackson. Speaking of an individual, who had undertaken
to discharge the duties of the Post-office at Richmond,
Wickham said that nobody could blame him for the
notorious irregularities of his oflBce, because he was never
there. '
To his friend, Francis W. Gilmer, who was much his
junior, Randolph's manner was quite different from what
it was to his older friends. In other words, it was the sort
of manner that is inspired, to use Randolph's own phrase
by * ' the freshness and unhackneyed youth " when impelled
by the ingenious enthusiasm of its nature to pay its
homage to conspicuous distinction or worth.
In addition to the sketch, which he wrote of Randolph
as an orator, Gilmer also harbored the idea of some day
writing a biography of him, a thing that he was capitally
qualified, with his rare scholarly attainments, sincerity,
and balance of character, to do. The fact is mentioned
in a letter which was written by Randolph to Dr. Bixxdc-
enbrough after Gilmer's death:
**Poor Gilmer," he said, "he is another of the cotmtless vic-
tims of calomel ! I had indulged a hope that he wotdd at least
» Little's "Hist, of Richmond," So, Lit. Mess., v. i8, p. loi.
* Roanoke, Mar. 6, 1832, Jackson Paper s^ v. 80, Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 627
Kve to finish his life of Fabricius. He told me some years ago
that, if he survived me, he meant to write a biography of me;
but what he would have found to say that is not in the news-
papers I cannot conjecture."'
In an earlier letter to Dr. Brockenbrough, when it was
becoming manifest that Gilmer was soon to be numbered
among those that doubly die, in that they die so yoimg,
Randolph said :
"Among those who have shown me favor, I set high value
upon the attachment of Frank Gilmer, and I, too, had a very
strong desire, for his sake, that he would take the professorship.
I was concerned to learn by a late letter from Mr. Barksdale
that he looked very ill, and was more desponding than when B.
saw him in March. When you write to him, name me among
those who think often and always kindly of him."*
Tenderer still was the language which Randolph sub-
sequently addressed to Gilmer himself :
"My dear friend, for such indeed you are, and such I am
persuaded you believe yourself to be, although I never told you
so before. Your letter written by another hand fills me with
the deepest concern. I know it must be bad with you when
you can't write. I wish I could be with you at your bedside.
Weak as I am, I might do something to alleviate the tedium
of your confinement ; but, alas ! even if my public duties did not
present an insurmountable obstacle, the state of my health, of
the weather, and the road would place an impassable gulf
between us. But we shall yet meet I trust once more, and
be as happy as our natures will allow us to be." ^
Some of Gilmer's observations were entered in the Diary
by Randolph. Among them is this passage in relation to
the Scotch Highlands from a letter written by him to
Elizabeth T. Coalter: "God forgive him that tempted
* Jan. 14, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 264.
•Jul. 8, 1825, Id., V. 2, 238.
s Washington, Feb. 10, 1826, Bryan MSS.
628 John Randolph of Roanoke
me to go a-laking it — ^where bald, bleak mountains distil
perpetual ink into the little holes below that they call
lakes. "
Love of literature was among the principal ties that
bound Randolph and Gilmer to each other. In one of
his letters to Gilmer, Randolph tells him that he had
found the shades of Roanoke so peaceful and so cool that
it had been with diflSculty that he could tear himself away
from them at the expiration of near a month, but that
nevertheless the monotony of the life at Roanoke and
the utter oblivion into which he had fallen among the few
that had once called themselves his friends, had induced
a wish on his part to come down to the nether regions, and
see what was passing in Pandemonium [i. e. Petersburg.]
No sooner, however, he went on to say, was his head out
of the shell than he had been assailed and stunned with
the clamor of the ** children of mammon wiser in their
generation than the children of light.** Then, after
mentioning the business matter hinted at in this academic
fashion, he tells Gilmer that he could not stand indifferent
to the good opinion or kind feelings of any person whose
principles he respected; especially if to that character
was united a congenial love of literature. ^ In the same
letter, he told Gilmer that he held their nocturnal tete-a-
t&ies in cherished recollection.
Randolph's letters to Gilmer are among his best. In
one, he tells him that, when he strikes his tent and com-
mences Arab, he must head his course towards the camp
of a brother Ishmaelite :
**If perchance," he said, **I be from home, you will most
probably hear of it in Amelia, or Prince Edward, and the worst
that can befall you is a solitary cup of coffee, which old Essex
will *be proud' to furnish, and a clean bed, whilst your cavalry
shall be supped like princes or rather like Hou)nimnmmns."'
» Petersburg, July i, 1820, Bryan MSS.
• Roanoke, July 22, 1821, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 629
In still another letter, Randolph, with the perfect
frankness which belonged to his character, told Gilmer
that he had such a sincere desire that he should never at
least retrograde in anything, that he must beg him to
return to his former well-defined compact and neat char-
acters in exchange for the loose and straggling hand and
wide intervals of the letter then before Randolph.'
Another letter to Gilmer contains this dreary description
of Washington society :
"When you go 'a-hunting' for lively and pleasant society,
let me recommend New or Old Holland to you in preference to
this 'metropolis* of darkness. The fields here are parched to
desolation and the life we lead rather resembles that of a
garrison in Siberia than the capital of a great country. Our
dinners will bear no comparison with those of Richmond; such
at least as I remember them. You go at half-past five, and
are ushered into a dark room where you can make out nobody.
A servant enters and Hghts up the theatre. About half-past
six, you sit down to table, from which you are invited to rise
in about an hour. To sit in the dining room five minutes after
you have swallowed a cup of cold, weak, muddy coffee would be
unpardonable illbreeding. The whole company instantly
hurry off, and, if you come in a hired coach, you pay for that
entertainment the price of a subscription ball. Of dinner
conversation there is absolutely none. Before the benumbing
influence of the time, the society in Richmond was in every
respect preferable to what we have here, and I believe it is so
yet.""
However, it is only fair to Randolph to say that, in
concluding this querulous letter, he terms it a ''triste-
ennuyeuse epistle. *'
Every now and then, in his letters to Gilmer, Randolph
puts oflF into the sea of politics :
» Washington, Feb. 21, 1824, Bryan MSS.
' Washington, Jan. 12, 1821, Bryan MSS.
630 John Randolph of Roanoke
"Mr. Jefferson may praise, and Col. J. T. may write," he
said on one occasion, ''and a solitary newspaper may puff, but
from the moment it came in fashion to drink 'Adams, Jefferson,
and Madison' at Republican meetings, it was evident that
Dtmce the second would not like Dtmce the first.
' ' Mr. J. himself did much to impair the principles upon which
he was brought into power, but his successor gave them the
coup de grdce. The reconunendation of the Bank of the U. S.
alone was a rentmciation of the heresies of his 'report*, and a
reconciliation with the Holy Catholic Church of Expediency
and Existing Circumstances. The present incumbent came in
upon no principles, and, as he brought none with him, so he
will carry none away with him. The state is a tabula rasa, I
have satisfied myself on one point — ^that, whoever may be
capable of ministering to the mind diseased of our body politic,
I am not that man. Your remarks on the state of society,
which has grown out of our system of legislation, are perf ectiy
just. You are too good a surgeon to cut only skin deep for
these carbimdes and cancers. It is well for you that you are
not within ear-shot, or I should give you a homily that would
put to shame the last of the worthy Archbishop of Grenada,
but this writing is a poor substitute for soul-communion."*
In another letter, Randolph takes one of his flings at
Henry Clay: "Among innumerable instances of false
everjrthing, he spoke of duties which England had lain.
This beats * crimes malum in se and crimes malum prohilh
itum, ' and rivals 'have they not fled (correcting himself),
have they not flew to arms'?"* (a) Here and there in
the letters to Gilmer are allusions to the foreign professors
whom Jefferson brought over to his newly established
University of Virginia with the aid of Gilmer.
'*But let me congratulate you on the safe arrival of jrour
friend Key and his worthy compeers," he said in one of them,
"and condole with the other eye (as is the fashion on the
« Roanoke, Jul. 22, 1821, Bryan MSS.
'Washington, Mar. 9, 1824, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 631
demise of a crown) at the not forthcoming of Johan Fabridus,
'Methinks he cometh late and tarry eth long.' One thing,
however, is certain: that the Jewel is [as] safe in its casket as
Cantabs. I take a warm and lively interest in all that regards
your academical friends, and I wish with all my heart that they
were to pass the spring in the lower country, where the swamps
(not yet breathing pestilence) display their beautiful flora and
the mocking birds sing, instead of being plunged into the red
mud of those tame and disfigured hills that we dignify with the
name of mountains."'
"Yours whatever betide to the end of the chapter of
life, " appear to have been the last words that Randolph
ever wrote to Gilmer; whose casement, to use the image
of Tennyson, was slowly growing a glinmiering square
when he received them. Gilmer died on Feb. 25, 1826,
in his 36th year, and of no yoimg Virginian in civil life,
d3dng so early, have his contemporaries ever been able to
say more truthfully in the words of Beatunont and Fletch-
er's Lover's Progress,
"As many hopes hang on his noble head as blossoms on a
bough in May, and sweet ones."
But Gilmer had been so long the victim of physical
suffering that death must have signified to him not so
much blasted ambition as surcease of suffering. **Pray,
stranger, " reads the epitaph over his grave at Pen Park,
in Albemarle County, Virginia, written by himself, '* allow
one who never had peace while he lived, the sad immimities
of the Grave, Silence and Repose. "
Two friends to whom Randolph was drawn by their
common passion for horse-flesh were Nathan Lough-
borough, of Grassland, near Washington, and Wm. R.
Johnson, of Oakland, near Petersburg. At one time,
Loughborough conceived the idea of publishing a sort of
compilation made up of Randolph's table talk and excerpts
I Washington, undated.
63^ John Randolph of Roanoke
from his speeches; but, beyond a few rough, but very
valuable memoranda, the purpose was never carried into
execution ; a fact deeply to be regretted, as Loughborough
seems to have been well qualified for the task. It was
certainly not from want of Boswellian enthusiasm that it
was never completed, for, in the Randolph will litigation,
Loughborough was unwilling to admit that there was any
flaw at any time, mental or otherwise, in the perfect crystal
which he evidently conceived Randolph to be. The fact
is all the more surprising because the letters written by
Randolph in the latter part of his life to Loughborough,
in which he betrayed his notion that ass' milk was for
him the very elixir of life, plainly indicate a disordered
intellect. Some of the letters from Randolph to Lough-
borough are little better than wormwood. Writing to
the latter from London about the attacks being made on
him in connection with the Russian Mission, he said :
"The barking of the curs in Congress meets with my
supreme indifference. How some of those yelpers would turn
tail and sneak off if I were to walk into the Hall, whether
muffled in flannels or furs. They can do me no harm. It
is the monstrous tissue of falsehoods, having not the slightest
foundation in fact, disseminated by the Press in quarters of
the Country, where they remain uncontradicted, that is cap-
able of doing me injury. To borrow the words of a far greater
man, *if these things be true, then am I unfit for my country, if
false (and of general belief), then is that country unfit for
me.
Worse still was this later exacerbation :
**I pray you spare me the subject of politics — State and
Federal. I am supersaturated with disgust, and care not a
straw what they do in Washington or Richmond. If you and
Tom Wicker and Hamilton, and one or two other 'damn good
friends' would keep your cursed politics to yourselves, and let
« Feb. 22, 1831, Nathan Loughborough MSS.
Randolph as a Man 633
me alone about them, you would confer a singular favor on one
whose last moments shall not be embittered or disturbed, if he
can help it, with the whores and rogues who govern this undone
cotmtry. I do earnestly entreat you to say nothing to me
about negroes, bond or free, or banks, or Presidential elections,
or candidates, &c. I give up the ship, but I am insured. The
principal of my estate, at a forced sale, is enough for my
wants, and she may go ashore and be d d. My only regret
is that I have wasted so much of my time, health, and money
upon her. If it were to do over again, I would follow Girard's
noble example and leave the 'ship of fools' to be navigated by
fools and knaves, while I confined myself to what I could con-
trol and regulate.*' *
Nor is there much choice between this and the dis-
tempered picture of Virginia which he painted in a letter
to Loughborough in the year 1828:
** I need not tell you that, from the time I entered Virginia, I
found the vilest roads, if roads they may be called, and every-
thing mean, dirty, and disgraceful, and out at elbows. The
negroes alone are cheerful, docile, and obliging, and I verily
think the most respectable, as they certainly are the most
happy, population that you find upon the road. Fredericks-
burg, which I had known in the days of Miss Eda Carter, Fitz-
hugh, of Chatham, Mann Page, of Mansfield, I could hardly
recognize; one bad, dirty, black inn, worse than a Spanish
venta; every mark of squalor, poverty, and laziness. Whiskey
and tobacco the chief articles of subsistence. In short,
although obliged to stand up stoutly for my country, when out
of it, everything I have seen but the cheerful society of slaves
fills me with disgust and mortification and chagrin. They alone
are better off, the whites being too lazy to make them work ; and
their labor [being] of no value, they laugh and grow fat."*(a)
At Oakland, the home of W. R. Johnson, Randolph
was quite frequently a guest, and, with the passion that
» Roanoke, Feb. 16, 1832, Nathan Loughborotigh MSS.
* Cartersville, James River, Apr. 30, 1828, Nathan Loughborough MSS.
634 John Randolph of Roanoke
both had for horses, there was much to cement the friend-
ship which existed between them. No letter from John-
son to Randolph, so far as we are aware, is in existence,
and the references to him in Randolph's general corres-
pondence are by no means abundant. Curiously enough,
it is to a dinner to which he was invited by ' * the celebrated
Mr. GuUey of pugilistic fame, " when he was in England
in 1830, that we must go to ascertain the impression made
upon his mind by Johnson's presence. Describing Gulley
in a letter written to Macon from London, he says :
** He lives, or did live, at the Hare Park, about 5 miles from
Newmarket, and has been for many years a better of the first
magnitude. He has a beautiful, rustic wife, for whose sake he
has sold Hare Park that she (who cannot be forced into the
society of the wives and daughters of the associates of her
husband, because she is an innkeeper's daughter) may be with
her relatives in Yorkshire. Gulley is an tmcommonly hand-
some, well-made and well-bred man. He lives like a Duke.
We had 6 varieties of wine, all exquisite of their sort; two
dishes of fish, and such venison as I never beheld elsewhere.
He has all the quietness of manner that distinguishes otu* friend
Wm. R.Johnson."'
During the last 12 months of his life, however, Ran-
dolph had a sporting grudge of some sort against Johnson,
for in one of his letters to Loughborough he declined an
offer from a Dr. Duvall to train his horses which had been
communicated to him by Loughborough, and gave vent
to his impatience in these hasty words :
**To tell you the truth, I have no wish to have any trans-
actions, especially upon the subject of horses, north of the
Potomac; and more especially in Maryland. I would never
have my boys exposed to the infection of your black cholera
for all the stakes that have been won for the last ten years, or
that will be won for 10 years to come; but, if Dr. D. will train
« London, Dec. 8, 1830, So. Lit, Mess., Nov. 1856, 382-385.
Randolph as a Man 635
with his own grooms and helpers, he shall have two or three of
my most promising nags; for I, too, am desirous of seeing W. R.
J. roundly beaten and his and ally in Baltimore and Phila-
delphia mortified and mulcted in a sum that the richest of the
two may feel."'
One of the closest friends that Randolph had in Rich-
mond was Benjamin Watkins Leigh. After the frightful
holocaust at the Richmond Theatre in the latter part of
181 1, which brought consternation and agonizing grief to
almost every prominent family in Richmond, Randolph
wrote to James M. Gamett :
**0n my return last evening from Sterrett Ridgely's, I was
encountered at Ross' with the news of the late desolation at
Richmond. Judge with what a dreadful and shuddering curi-
osity I forced my eyes over the catalogue of victims, among
whom I trembled lest I should find Leigh or Brockenbrough.
Thank Heaven! They are safe! But Juliana Harvie, her
brother, Edwin, who nobly sacrificed his life in an ineffectual
attempt to save his sister, and their charming niece, Mary
Whitlocke, the darling of Mrs. Brockenbrough's heart —
especially since the loss of her son — have perished. Leigh
writes that he fears for Mrs. B.'s intellects.***
A fellow-planter to whom Randolph was truly attached,
was Edmtmd Irby, of Nottoway County, Va. Irby had
an interest in a plantation on the Banister River, in
Halifax County, and, on his journeys to or from this plan-
tation, he occasionally stopped over at Roanoke. Ran-
dolph was equally familiar with Irby's home in Nottoway
County, and, in one of his letters to Gamett, he spoke of
it as being as healthy as any in the middle country. The
Nottoway, he said, had been straightened and widened,
and its lowgrounds perfectly drained for many miles ; and
Irby had erected a dyke along it to protect his lowlands
« Roanoke, Nov. 3, 1832, Nathan Loughborough MSS.
• Georgetown, Jan. i, 1812, J. M. Gamett, Jr., MSS.
636 John Randolph of Roanoke
against floods.* In another letter to Gamett, he gave
him this description of Irby :
** I am glad that you like my friend Irby. He is one of the
best of good fellows, and a fine specimen 'rare now-a-days* of
the old Virginia planter; indixstriotis, plain, hospitable, fond of
sport, but not sacrificing business to it. He is the best culti-
vator and improver of land that I know, and a more honest,
unaffected creature never breathed. I could tell you some
striking instances of his rare worth."*
A minor but significant proof of the esteem and affec-
tion, in which Irby was held by Randolph, is to be found
in the fact that, after Irby's death, Randolph entered in
the Diary the dates on which he was bom and died, and
also the birth dates of his widow and six children.
By his codicil, executed in 1826, he also bequeathed to
Irby the next choice after that of his friend, William J.
Barksdale, of any of his mares and fillies and his double-
barrel gun. ^
During the latter part of Randolph's life, a very cordial
intimacy existed between him and William J. Barksdale,
who resided at Clay Hill, in Amelia County, Va., and
whose wife was a daughter of Randolph's friend, Mrs.
Tabb, as was the wife of his friend. Dr. Bathurst Ran-
dolph. A regular correspondence was kept up between
them, and Randolph was often a guest at Clay Hill. The
opinion that he had of this friend may be inferred from
what he said of him in a letter to Gilmer : * * I spent nearly
a week with Barksdale, whose house I find incomparably
preferable to my own. He is indeed a finished gentleman,
and one of the worthiest men in the world into the bar-
gain."^
» Roanoke, Sept. 26, 1820, Theo. Gamett MSS.
* Roanoke, Sept. 10, 1832, Theo. Gamett MSS.
s Bouldin, 207.
* Roanoke, Mar. 31, 1825, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 637
John Marshall, who resided at Charlotte Court House,
was also a warm friend of Randolph. It was under his
roof, as we have seen, that Randolph fotmd an asylum, in
1832, when his mind forsook him. Marshall was a lawyer
of high standing, and transmitted his practice and abilities
to his son, the late Judge Hunter H. Marshall, of Char-
lotte County.
Randolph's other friends, who resided in the neighbor-
hood of Bizarre or Roanoke, or along the highways, over
which he rode through Southside Virginia, on his way to
Washington, have already been sufficiently mentioned by
us in a preceding chapter, in connection with his general
social activities; but an additional word with regard to
one or two of them may be pardoned, (a)
Randolph was so often absent at Washington that the
care of Bizarre, while he resided there or was responsible
for its management, was confided to Thomas A. Morton,
as were likewise certain lots which he owned in Farmville.
The relation between them was one of real friendship, and
the following letter from Randolph to Morton merits
perusal :
** My dear Friend: This is no common-place address, for
without profession or pretension such you have quietly and
modestly proved yourself to be, while, like Darius, I have been
** 'Deserted in my utmost need.
By those my former bounty fed.'
** All this is only acting according to your character, and you
can hardly help it now, second nature being superadded to
the first. In the whole course of my unprofitable life, I never
received a letter from a man that affected me so deeply as yours
of the 3rd.
** If I can, I will be with you on the 14th (the day before the
sale). I will bring with me the original blotter of the sale,
which Creed Taylor can verify, if he be not civiliier mortuus, as
I greatly fear he is. There is nobody else left, unless it be our
old friend Bedford. [Redford?] . . .
638 John Randolph of Roanoke
** But my dear friend, what are, or what ought to be, the cares
of a man about property that believes himself to be dying, and
almost, but not 'altogether' hopes it? I am now as much
worse than when you saw me on my way to Buckingham,
November court, as then I was worse than when I left London.
* 'I wish to sell the lots next the warehouse at cost, and interest
if to be had, or exchange them for others, adjoining the lots
I got from your father and of Wathell, or those on the branch;
or I could sell all, or improve for the benefit of thankless heirs.
'''He turns with anxious care and crippled hands
His bonds of debt and mortgages of land.'
"A long credit to me is the same as a short one; I shan't
outlive a bank discotmt.
** Caught like Bonaparte by an Arctic winter, setting in on
November (Prince Edward) court, but not like him in latitude
50-55, I am in 37® 30 north, a little south of Algiers. I am
tied here until the March and April winds and MAY frosts are
over, if I live so long."*
Several letters from Randolph to Edward Booker, of
Prince Edward Cotmty, who was another warm friend of
his, have survived; but their interest was transitory.
Not so, however, is the last of the tributes of gratitude
and affection that we shall quote Randolph as paying to
Mrs. Tabb. Included in it, the reader will note, is the
widow of Dr. Bathurst Randolph:
**I met Mrs. T. and poor Mrs. R. beyond Hanover Court
House, ' ' he wrote to Dr. Dudley. * * These are some of the very
few people in this world, by whom I have been treated with
kindness under every circumstance of my unprosperous life,
and, when I forget them, may my God forget me."*
Nor can we omit another word in regard to Dr. Thomas
Robinson, who was very intimate with Randolph when the
latter resided at Bizarre, and who, after his removal to
' Bouldin, 228.
> Washington, Dec. 18, 1821, Letters toa Y. R,, 228.
Randolph as a Man 639
Petersburg, was consulted professionally by Randolph's
sister when her feet were about to slip into the grave.
Writing of the medical attentions which Tudor was
receiving at Dr. Robinson's hands during the early sick-
ness, to which we have previously referred, Randolph
said in a letter to Nicholson :
** If it (Tudor 's life) is saved, he will owe it to the unwearied
exertions of Dr. Robinson, who has scarcely quitted his bedside.
Endeavor to recollect this worthy man. He is an Irish exile,
a man of science, a polite scholar, and a gentleman. I intro-
duced him to our club (and I think you were present) at
Dashiell's the winter before last. He has since been at Phila-
delphia, and spent the last summer at the Lazaretto, in the
midst of fever and pestilence, and, although his practice has not
been long, it has been very extensive.**'
Dr. Robinson married one of Randolph's Murray
cousins, and there is a playful message to her in a letter
from him to her husband :
**I had heard from Mrs. R. of Bizarre,*' he wrote, **of your
severe attack, and be assured that it gave me very great con-
cern. Take care of yourself, and turn miser for a few years (I
am not at all afraid of the habit becoming fixed), and then you
may abandon the drudgery of your profession. Tell Cousin
Nancy that I wish I could give her sharp tumed-up nose a little
red on the top of it, and then I should have some hope of mak-
ing her a skinflint. But, come what may, I indulge a hope of
seeing you both yet before I die, and, of course, before you
die.***
No friends of Randolph, however, were closer to him
than the four whom we are yet to mention: Littleton
Waller Tazewell ; Dr. and Mrs. John Brockenbrough, and
William Leigh.
The friendship between Tazewell and Randolph began
« Bizarre, Mar. 17, 1805, Nicholson MSB., Libr. Cong.
» Roanoke, July 9» i8J3-
640 John Randolph of Roanoke
in boyhood and lasted throughout their lives; retaining
until the very last something of its boyhood exuberance
and freshness. Hugh Blair Grigsby, who knew both well,
tells us that, when Randolph was speaking, Tazewell
would listen with the relish of a school-boy, rubbing his
hands and laughing heartily, as the orator went along.*
And not the least interesting passage in Grigsby's Dis-
course on Tazewell is that in which he described a great
plea made by Tazewell in an important case argued in the
Supreme Court of the United States in 1822, which filled
Randolph with such sensations of admiration that he
incontinently exclaimed, as he listened, in a voice audible
to those about him: *'I told you so — I told you so! old
Virginny never tires. ** Was this the origin of the cele-
brated phrase which caused some jealous outlander to
say, that if Virginia never tired, it was, perhaps, because
she never moved along fast enough to become tired ? *
The most striking thing about Tazewell, however, after
all, was not so much the impression of extraordinary
abilities that he left upon his contemporaries by his actual
achievements at the Bar and in public life, as their feeling
that he possessed a reserve of force which lacked nothing
but the incitements of personal ambition and a great
occasion to convert Strength half leaning on his own right
arm into erect and irresistible power. In the opinion of
Randolph, Tazewell needed only an urgent motive for
self-assertion to be second to no man in the country;
indeed, in a letter to General Mercer he is said to have
declared superlatively that, if such a conjuncture in the
affairs of the United States were to arise as would call into
full play the faculties of TazeweU, he would be the first
man of the 19th century.^ (a)
When Tazewell thought of resigning his seat in the
United States Senate in 1826, Randolph wrote to him:
« Discourse on Tazewell, 82.
« /d., 44. » Id,, 87.
Randolph as a Man 641
"I can't bear the thought of your resignation. It will
leave me in a hopeless and forlorn state of political widowhood.
When you were in the Lower House 25 years ago, you served
but one short session; a most important one indeed — Dec.
1800 to March 3, 1801 — now you have served but two; indeed
but one, after an interval of a quarter of a century. And
shall this be all the contribution of a mind like yours to the
necessities of our poor old mother, Virginia?"'
On another occasion, writing to Tazewell, during the
absence of the latter from the Senate, he told him that he
was supporting a motion of his, and then added : ' ' I wish
you would (could) leave me your abilities and information
too when you are obliged to be absent. '* ' Randolph also
had the highest opinion of the scholarship of Tazewell.
Stirred by the death of Gilmer, and the belief that Taze-
well too had succumbed to a severe attack of illness, he
wrote on one occasion to Dr. Brockenbrough :
*'This cold, black plague has destroyed the only two men
that Virginia has bred since the Revolution who had real
claims to learning; the rest are all shallow pretenders; they
were scholars, I repeat, and ripe and good ones, and the soil
was better than the culture. Here the material surpassed the
workmanship, tasteful and costly as it was.**^
Not the least interesting of the letters from Randolph
to Tazewell is a brief one in which he asked him to institute
legal proceedings against St. George Tucker, for the
reasons that we have already explained, and holding out
to him a retainer of $100.00 and a sum of not less than
$500.00 as a trial fee.
How deeply Randolph must have loved Tazewell we
can begin to divine, when we find him coupling his name
with that of Dr. Brockenbrough, who was, perhaps, after
« Washington, Feb. 14, 1826, L. W. Tazewell, Jr., MSS.
'Washington, Feb. 21, 1826, Id.
I.Washington, March 4, 1826, Garland, v. 2, 268.
VOL. II — ^41
642 John Randolph of Roanoke
all, dearer to him, if intimacy is susceptible of such delicate
shading, than any other friend that he ever had. Speaking
of some Scotch airs which he had heard stmg at a party in
Washington by a Mrs. P., he wrote to Dr. Dudley as
follows :
** Among others, she sang There* s nae Luck aboot the House'
very well, and Atdd Lang Syne, When she came to the lines,
** *We twa ha'e paidlet in the bum,
Frae morning sun till dine,'
I cast my mind's eye around for such a 'trusty feese,* and
could light only on T., (who, God be praised ! is here), and you
may judge how we meet. During the time that Dr. B. was at
Walker M. 's school (from the spring of 1 784, to the end of 1 785,
I was in Bermuda; and (although he was well acquainted with
both my brothers) our acquaintance did not begin until nearly
twenty years afterwards. Do you know that I am childish
enough to regret this very sensibly? for, although I cannot de-
tract from the esteem or regard in which I hold him, nor lessen
the value I set upon his friendship, yet, had I known him
then, I think I should enjoy ^wW Lang Syne more, when I hear
it sung, or hum it to myself, as I often do."'
On one occasion, Randolph spoke of Dr. Brockenbrough
as his most intimate friend; and the following is the
account given by Dr. Brockenbrough of the origin of the
friendship. It began when Randolph and he were both
members of the Burr Grand Jury.
**I did not seek his acquaintance, because it had been
impressed on my mind that he was a man of a wajrward and
irritable temper, but, as he knew that I had been a school-
fellow of his brothers Richard and Theodorick, while he was in
Bermuda for the benefit of his health, he very courteously
made advances to me to converse about his brothers, to whom
he had been much devoted, and ever afterwards I found him a
' Letters to a Y. R., 241.
Randolph as a Man 643
steady and confiding friend. He frequently passed much of
his time at my house, and was the most agreeable and interest-
ing inmate you can imagine. No little personal attention
was ever lost on him, and he rendered himself peculiarly a
favorite with my wife by his conversation on belles-lettres, in
which he was so well versed; and he read (in which he excelled)
to her very many of the choice passages of Milton and
Shakespeare."'
It was to Dr. Brockenbrough that Randolph wrote
after his defeat in 1813 : "Absorbed as I may be supposed
to be with my own misfortunes, I live only for my friends ;
they are few, but they are precious beyond all himian
estimation. "
Randolph was frequently tmder Dr. Brockenbrough's
roof at Richmond, and once, to his great delight, Dr. and
Mrs. Brockenbrough paid him a visit at Roanoke.
Despite what Dr. Brockenbrough says about Randolph
as an agreeable guest, and, despite his reluctance in the
Randolph will litigation to admit that Randolph was ever
positively insane, his patience with his friend must have
been tried at times. In the coiu-se of the litigation just
mentioned, he testified that, in 1826, Randolph passed a
night in prayer at his house, keeping two candles burning
in his bedroom throughout his devotions; and that, before
day, Randolph ordered the servant, whom he had required
to sit up with him, to take the two candles and light him
down to the Eagle Tavern. ' In one of his journals, under
date of April 16, 18 19, Randolph also made this curious
entry: "Dined with Dr. Bro. — ^vile conduct. *'^
When Dr. Brockenbrough and Randolph were absent
from each other, Randolph wrote to him with great fre-
quency, and in terms to which reticence was almost a
< Garland, v. i, 261.
» Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor. Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersburg,
Va.
» Va. Hist. Soc.
644 John Randolph of Roanoke
stranger; but in the preceding chapters of this book, we
have quoted with such freedom from these letters as to
render only a sparing reference to them in this place
necessary. They not only have a distinct value for per-
sonal and social reasons, but also because of the pointed
political reflections which they sometimes contain. To
no one did Randolph ever state more clearly than to Dr.
Brockenbrough the causes to which he referred the ever
increasing disparity, in point of poptdation and wealth,
between the Northern and Southern sections of the Union:
11
Your opinions," he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough in 1829,
concerning the operation of this incubus, miscalled Govern-
ment, I coitfess, surprise me. I have made every allowance for
the deamess of slave labor, and the monstrous abstwdities of
our own State legislation. But I cannot shut my eyes to the
fact that a community that is forbidden to buy cannot sell.
'The whole Southern country will buy less, and make their own
clothing, without making smaller crops.' Cut bono this last
operation, except to wear out their lands and slaves gratui-
tously ? It is this very 'buying less,' that lies at the root of our
mischief. If we bought more, we would sell more in propor-
tion, and become rich by the transaction. To pursue a
Chinese policy, which we did not want, this Government, by
cutting us off from our best customer, England, inflicts a dead
loss of $15,000,000 this very year on one Southern state alone
(Southern Carolina) ; as returns cannot be made in her com-
modities, England, in time of dearth, refixses to receive her rice.
Formerly she would not eat India rice. In like manner, she
will soon become independent of us for her supply of cotton.
She is also planting tobacco; so that the conflagration of the
factories, at which I heartily rejoice, will take from us the mite
received for their consumption. Again, all the expenditure of
this machine of ours, is made (Norfolk and Point Comfort
excepted) north of the Chesapeake. All of the dividends of
the debt of the bank are received there. No coimtry can
withstand such oppression and such a drain.
"As to W. H., I should not pay the slightest regard to any-
Randolph as a Man 645
thing that he can say. I am well acquainted with the West
Indies, and 1 have been told by some of the principal
proprietors that with all their heavy charges for provisions,
lumber, mules, &c., from which Louisiana is exempt, the sugar
crop is clear of all expenses; these being defrayed by the mo-
lasses and rum. Moreover, you are to consider that the West
Indies suffer under grievous commercial restrictions, and that
Wilberforce and Co. have very much impaired the value of
their slaves. (The same thing is at work here.) Nevertheless
I was assured by the most intelligent and opulent of the 'West
India Body* that the mortgages and embarrassments of
Jamaica &c. grew chiefly out of the proprietors residing in
England, and trusting to agents; sometimes to colonial osten-
tation and extravagance; but that there was scarcely an
instance of a judicious and active planter personally super-
intending his affairs, who did not amass a fortune in a very
few years.
"England was our best customer, because we were her best
customers. This is the law of trade, and the basis of wealth;
instead of which we have the exploded 'mercantile system,' as
it was ridiculously called, revived and fastened, like the Old
Man of the Sea, around our necks.*'*
The subject was one that haunted his thoughts so per-
sistently that he recurred to it five days later in these
words :
"Your letter of Tuesday (17) is just received. I did not
'mistake you very much,* for I did not attribute to you opin-
ions favorable to the tariff. The causes of disparity between
the East and South are to be found, among other things, in the
former charging and being paid for every militia man in the
field during the Revolutionary War, and for every bundle of
hay and peck of oats furnished for public service ; in the buying
up the certificates of debt for a song, and funding them in the
banks; in the bounty upon their navigation, and the monopoly
of trade which the European wars gave them. If the militia
services, losses, and supplies of the Carolinas had been brought
' Feb. 14, 1829, Garland, v. 2, 319.
646 John Randolph of Roanoke
into accotint, all New England would not have sold for as
much as would have paid them. In regard to the West Indies,
the great law of culture prevails — that the worst soils hardly
reproduce the expense of cultivation. If, even in Georgia,
where the cane does not yield one-half the strength of syrup,
sugar can be made to profit, what must be the yield of the
rich, fresh lands of Jamaica, St. Kitts, or Juvinau? The syrup
of New Orleans, is, by the proof, 8; of the West Indies, 16." ' (a)
How deeply attached Randolph was to Dr. and Mrs.
Brockenbrough many of his letters abtmdantly attest.
On one occasion, he wrote from Dr. Brockenbrough's
home to Dr. Dudley in this manner of his hosts :
*'The Doctor and lady return your compliments. He is
the best man in the world, and she a very superior woman.
Her understanding is masculine and well improved by reading;
but her misfortunes (how should they fail) have cast a sombre
hue over her temper and manners."'
As Gabriella Harvie, Mrs. Brockenbrough had first
married Thomas Mann Randolph, of Tuckahoe; and the
marriage had been an unhappy one.
On another occasion, he wrote to Dr. Dudley: **I am
glad that my good friend, Dr. Brockenbrough, found you
out. Cherish the acquaintance of that man. 'He is not
as other men are. '"^ ''There is a mind of a very high
order; well improved, and manners that a queen might
envy,'* was the judgment which Randolph passed upon
Mrs. Brockenbrough in one of his letters to his niece.*
At the end of the same year, he also wrote to his niece:
'*I am sorry that you have abstained from visiting Mrs. B.,
because I am persuaded your society would have been a relief
to her, and I am sure that her company and conversation could
« Feb. 19, 1829, Garland, v. 2, 320.
' Richm., Mar. 20, 18 14, Letters to a Y.R., 157.
» Roanoke, Sept. 3, 1811, Id., loi.
« Washington, Jan. 27, 1822, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 647
not fail to gratify you. She is a woman of a very powerful and
cultivated understanding, in whose society I have found great
delight.'"
Some four years later, in another letter to his niece, he
spoke of the pair in these touching words :
**You say that Dr. and Mrs. Brockenbrough love me and
speak of me continually. Indeed, I believe they do, and that
conviction is one of the treasures of my heart. For more than
20 years, I have been to them an object of uniform kindness
and attention, and their friendship has, during that long and
unprosperous period of my life, constituted its chief solace.
They have never been wanting to rejoice in my prosperity
and mourn in my adversity. The more and the longer you
know them, the deeper will be your admiration and esteem.
To them I look for the greater share of what little comfort may
be left in the dregs of the cup of life. Of one thing I never can
be deprived — the gratification of numbering them among those
who have honored me with a place in their regard.'* '
The friendship continued as long as Randolph lasted.
"Took leave of my friends Dr. and Mrs. Brockenbrough.
Felt more like leaving home than returning to it, " was an
entry made by him in one of his journals under date of
Feb. 18, 1830.^ And, perhaps. Dr. Brockenbrough was
the only person in the world to whom Randolph, even in
his shattered condition of body and mind, could have
written these words, wrung from his proud nature by the
pitiable state in which he found himself in the late summer
or early fall, of 1832, when the cup of existence had nothing
for him but its blackest and bitterest dregs :
** After I wrote to you on Sunday night, the next day I had a
most violent fit of hysteria. I was so moved by the ingratitude
of my servants and my destitute and forlorn condition that I
» Dec. 29, 1822, Id,
« Washington, Feb. 2, 1827, Bryan MSS.
1 Va. Hist. Soc,
648 John Randolph of Roanoke
'lifted up my voice and wept* ; wept most bitterly. Yet I am
now inclined to think that I did the poor creatures some
injustice by ascribing to ingratitude what was the insensibility
of their condition in life. But everybody, you only excepted,
abandons me in my misery."*
The long friendship between Randolph and Wm. Leigh
began as Mrs. Malaprop thought marriage should begin —
with a little aversion ; for, in the Randolph will litigation,
Leigh testified that he had been told by Beverley Tucker
that, in the first instance, Randolph had taken a dislike
to him.^ The dislike was subsequently converted into
feelings of the deepest esteem and the warmest affection.
After the year 1822, Leigh looked after Randolph's
business affairs, when he was not at home; saw him two
or three times a month, when he was at home, and con-
versed with him, when he met him, in the most imreserved
and confidential manner. We quote Leigh's own words
in the Randolph will litigation. ^ In one of his letters to
his niece, Randolph spoke of Leigh as his Fidus Achates,^
and, while he was disposed to charge to Leigh's profes-
sional preoccupations the demoralized condition, in which
he found his plantation, as he thought, on his return from
Russia, his feelings about Leigh never imderwent the
slightest change. At one time, he conducted a planta-
tion on the Dan River, purchased by Leigh, jointly with
him; contributing to its operation a certain niunber of
negroes, draft animals, and implements. This arrange-
ment Randolph evidently entered into for the ptupose of
assisting Leigh, who did not have the hands with which to
work the plantation himself. Many years later, he asked
Leigh how the account between them stood, and was told
» Garland, v. 2, 349.
« Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersbui^g,
Va.
4 Washington, Jan. 30, 1822, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 649
by him that there was a balance in favor of Leigh of
$2,807.44; but that Randolph had been given no credit
for the hire of the negroes. Randolph replied that it did
not amount to more than the balance against him. Leigh
told him that he thought that it did, though he could not
say how much ; whereupon Randolph proposed that they
should execute mutual releases ; which was done, Randolph
himself preparing with his own hand the release by which
he discharged Leigh. '
It is not often that one friend has occasion to write
more painful words about another than these which Leigh
wrote to John Randolph Clay a few months after Ran-
dolph's death :
**For some time after this event, I could not muster up
resolution enough to write or do anything. Hence my long
silence. We had been so long such close friends, and I was
so strongly attached to him that I could not part with him
without the deepest grief. And yet my judgment told me
that death was to him a relief from perpetual torture of both
body and mind. After his return from the Russian Mission,
he was not the same man. For months after he reached home,
he did not pass one quiet hour, and his active mind, excited to
madness, was employed in seeking matter to complain of. He
quarrelled with his neighbors and slaves, and abused his best
friends. I, who, as you know, had given up too much of my
time to serve him, and had devoted myself to him, so as to
draw upon me the censure of the world, escaped not. But
I knew his situation, and I was, without the least feeling of
anger, overwhelmed with sorrow at witnessing the overthrow of
his powerful understanding and his sufferings. Even after he
had recovered from the violence of his madness, he was not the
man he had been before his departure for Russia. His feelings
were perverted, and he seemed to have lost in a great degree
his attachment for his old friends — the effect, doubtless, of
derangement. In addition to this, he was tortured by disease
» Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor. Clk's Office, Cir. Ct., Petersbuig,
Va.
650 John Randolph of Roanoke
of body. This being his situation, no friend ought to have
desired for him protracted life. But my feelings were at war
with my judgment, and for sometime I could think of
nothing but his death."*
Such was Randolph in his family and social relations.
When, in addition to the facts which we have set forth
above, the reader is told that no less than five persons —
Randolph's brother Henry, Joseph Bryan, Thomas
Spalding, of Georgia, Joseph Clay, Sir Grey Skipwith,
and Charles Sterrett Ridgely, are known to have named
sons after him, because of the love that they bore him, it
is diffictdt to find words keen and indignant enough to
fitly condemn the reckless brutality which led Henry
Adams to say that Randolph belonged **to an order of
animated beings still nearer than the Indians to the
jealous predacious instincts of dawning intelligence. "*
To Randolph religion brought only a precarious degree
of happiness; though it cannot be doubted that, except
during the period of his avowed infidelity in early life, he
was subject to truly religious emotions, when in a normal
state of mind and heart.
In his childhood, he received the religious instruction of
a pious mother, and, in his later years, he took pride in
the fact that he was bom and baptized in the Church of
England.^ In the prayer book, which he gave to his
nephew, John St. George Randolph, on August 8, 1818,
he wrote these words :
** Your parents were bom members of the Chtu'ch of England.
All your forefathers have been of that persuasion. You can
have no good cause to desert it. Keep this book; and consider
it, as next to the Bible (from which, indeed, it is for the most
part extracted) entitled to yotu* reverence. If any charge you
' Halifax Co., Aug. 10, 1833, Clay MSS. Libr. Cong.
* John Randolph, 256.
» Garland, v. 2, 103.
Randolph as a Man 651
with formality, ask them if there be more form in reading prose
than in singing verse, given out too by another. This all sects
but the Quakers do. Ask them to read our Liturgy, more
especially the General Confession, the Te Deum, and, above
all, the Litany, if they can, with unmelted hearts or uncurdled
blood. He that refuses to go along with a devout reader of
this service may suspect himself of a want of 'vital religion.'
If form be again objected, and the coldness of our service, tell
them the coldness is not in the book but in the bosoms of men.
Here is something which out of the Bible we shall seek else-
where in vain, to suit every rank and condition of life. I am
rarely affected by extempore prayer, often in pain for the per-
son prajdng, but, in whatever mood I find [myself], my feelings,
whether of penitence or thanksgiving, respond to the suppli-
cations and prayers of our Venerable Church."*
Influenced by the general religious reaction of the time,
and such scoffers as Voltaire, Diderot and D'Alembert,
Randolph, in his earlier years, forgot the precepts of his
mother and became an infidel. This condition of mind,
however, curiously enough had been preceded by a brief
period, during which he imagined that he might become a
^fohammedan.
**Very early in life," he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough, **I
imbibed an absurd prejudice in favor of Mohammedanism
and its votaries. The Crescent had a talismanic effect on my
imagination, and I rejoiced in all its triumphs over the Cross
(which I despised), as I mourned over its defeats; and Maho-
met II. himself did not more exult than I did, when the Cres-
cent was planted on the dome of St. Sophia, and the Cathedral
of the Constantines converted into a Turkish mosque."'
This vagary, as fantastic as the conversion of Lord
George Gordon to Judaism, soon passed away.
Side by side with it, should be read the letter from
Randolph to Dr. Brockenbrough, in which he narrated
» Sou, Churchman, Feb. 19, 1880.
'Sept. 25, 1818, Garland, v. 2, 102.
652 John Randolph of Roanoke
the process by which he had been reconverted from his
parlor Mohammedanism and subsequent state of religious
skepticism to the faith in which he had been bom and
nurtured, as a child.
*'I am sorry that Quashee should intrude upon you un-
reasonably. The old man, I suppose, knows the pleasure I
take in your letters, and, therefore, feels anxious to procure his
master the gratification. I cannot, however, express sorrow—
for I do not feel it — at the impression which you tell me my
last letter made upon you. May it lead to the same happy
consequences that I have experienced — which I now feel — in
that sunshine of the heart, which the peace of God, that
passeth all understanding, alone can bestow!
''Your imputing such sentiments to a heated imagination
does not surprise me. who have been bred in the school of Hob-
bes and Bayle, and Shaftesbury and Bolingbroke, and Hume
and Voltaire and Gibbon; who have cultivated the skeptical
philosophy from my vain-glorious boyhood — I might almost
say childhood — ^and who have felt all that unutterable disgust
which hypocrisy, and cant, and fanaticism never fail to excite
in men of education and refinement, superadded to our natural
repugnance to Christianity. I am not, even now, insensible to
this impression; but, as the excesses of her friends (real or
pretended) can never alienate the votary of liberty from a
free form of government, and enlist him under the banners
of despotism, so neither can the cant of fanaticism, or hypo-
crisy, or of both (for so far from being incompatible, they are
generally found united in the same character — ^may God in his
mercy preserve and defend us from both) disgust the pious
with true religion.
"Mine has been no sudden change of opinion. I can refer to
a record, showing, on my part, a desire of more than nine years*
standing, to partake of the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper;
although, for two and twenty years preceding, my feet had
never crossed the threshold of the house of prayer. This
desire I was restrained from indulging by the fear of eating and
drinking unrighteously. And, although that fear hath been
cast out by perfect love, I have never yet gone to the altar;
Randolph as a Man 653
neither have I been present at the performance of divine
service, unless indeed I may so call my reading the liturgy of
our church and some chapters of the Bible to my poor negroes
on Sundays. Such passages as I think require it, and which I
feel competent to explain, I comment upon — enforcing as far
as possible, and dwelling upon, those texts especially that en-
join the indispensable accompaniment of a good life as the
touchstone of the true faith. The Sermon from the Mount,
and the Evangelists generally; the Epistle of Paul to the
Ephesians, chap, vi; the General Epistle of James, and the
first Epistle of John; these are my chief texts.
"The constunmation of my conversion — I use the word in its
strictest sense — is owing to a variety of causes, but chiefly
to the conviction, unwillingly forced upon me, that the very
few friends, which an unprosperous life (the fruit of an un-
governable temper) had left me, were daily losing their hold
upon me, in a firmer grasp of ambition, avarice, or sensuality.
I am not sure that, to complete the anti-climax, avarice should
not have been last ; for although, in some of its effects, debauch-
ery be more disgusting than avarice, yet, as it regards the
unhappy victim, this last is more to be dreaded. Dissipation,
as well as power or prosperity, hardens the heart; but avarice
deadens it to every feeling but the thirst for riches. Avarice
alone could have produced the slave-trade; avarice alone can
drive, as it does drive, this infernal traffic, and the wretched
victims of it, like so many post-horses, whipped to death in a
mail-coach. Ambition has its reward in the pride, pomp, and
circumstance of glorious war; but where are the trophies of
avarice? — the handcuff, the manacle, and the blood-stained
cowhide? What man is worse received in society for being a
hard master? Every day brings to light some H — e or H — ^ns
in our own boasted land of liberty * Who denies the hand of a
sister or daughter to such monsters? Nay, they have even
appeared in *the abused shape of the vilest of women.' I say
nothing of India, or Amboyna, or Cortez, or Pizarro.
"When I was last in your town, I was inexpressibly shocked
(and perhaps I am partly indebted to the circumstance for
accelerating my emancipation) to hear, on the threshold of the
temple of the least erect of all the spirits that fell from heaven.
654 John Randolph of Roanoke
these words spoken by a man second to none in this nation in
learning or abilities; one, too, whom I had, not long before,
seen at the table of our Lord and Saviour: *I do not want the
Holy Ghost (I shudder while I write), or any other spirit in
me.' If these doctrines are true (St. Paul's), there was no
need for Wesley and Whitefield to have separated from the
church. The Methodists are right, and the church wrong. I
want to see the old church, &c. &c. : that is, such as this diocese
was under Bishop Terrick, when wine-bibbing and buck-
parsons were sent out to preach *a dry clatter of morality/ and
not the word of God, for 16,000 lbs. of tobacco. When I
speak of morality, it is not as condemning it; religion includes
it, but much more. Day is now breaking, and I shall ex-
tinguish my candles, which are better than no light; or, if I do
not, in the presence of the powerful King of Day they will be
noticed only by the dirt and ill savor that betray all human
contrivances; the taint of htunanity. Morality is to the
Gospel not even as a farthing rushlight to the blessed sun."*
Of the perplexities, the anxieties, and the misgivings,
which accompanied the transition mentioned in this
letter, we need not speak in detail. The transition itself
was doubtless initiated, in no little measure, by the gen-
eral religious reawakening of which Dr. John H. Rice
spoke in one of his letters to the Rev. Archibald Alexander:
**You remember," he said, **that in Virginia there was a
class of persons who never went to church at all . They thought
it beneath them. That class is diminishing in numbers pretty
rapidly, and, now and then, persons of this description are
entering into the church. Mrs. Judith Randolph, of Bizarre,
lately made a profession of religion. I have been much in her
company since, and I think her among the most truly pious in
our country. John Randolph attended the sacrament when his
sister joined with us, and seemed to be much impressed. He
invited Mr. Hoge home with him and conversed much upon
religion. Mr. Hoge is fully persuaded that he is, as it is
' Sept. 25, 1 81 8, Garland, v. 2, 100.
Randolph as a Man 655
expressed here, an exercised man. Wm. B. Giles regtdarly
attends our missionaries who preach in Amelia. Mr. Speece
preached in his neighborhood not long ago. He was present
and remarkably attentive. In the evening, he repeated to a
lady, who could not go to church, Mr. Speece's sermon almost
verbatim; adding, when he was done, that was the best sermon
he had ever heard or read. Joseph Eggleston, formerly mem-
ber of Congress, entertains our missionaries at his house with
the utmost cordiality. The wife of John W. Eppes is said to
be under very serious religious impressions. There were at
the last Cumberland sacrament from 8 to lo of the Randolph
connections at the table of the Lord."*
So John Randolph was but one of the many straws
caught up and floated off into the bosom of the Church by
one of those rising tides of Evangelical Presbyterianism,
which were so common in this region. From being a
merely exercised hearer, he, after experiencing all the
vicissitudes of doubt, fear, and love which attended the
full reconcilement of a human soul to the piuposes of God
in his day, and, after receiving word after word of expla-
nation, assiu^ance, and hope from Key, William Meade,
and Dr. Hoge, at last found that he no longer shrank from
the altar which he had written to Key that he would have
given all that he was worth to be able to approach, and yet
could not;* and broke out into this tritunphant paean of
confidence and joy :
** Congratulate me Frank — ^wish me joy you need not — give
it you cannot — I am at last reconciled to my God and have
assurance of his pardon through faith in Christ, against which
the very gates of Hell cannot prevail. Fear hath been driven
out by perfect love. I now know that you know how I feel;
and, within a month, for the first time, I understand your
feelings and character and that of every real Christian. Love
to Mrs. Key and yotu* brood. I am not now afraid of being
» Memoir of the Rev. Jno. H. Rice, by Maxwell, 55.
* Garland, v. 2, 66.
656 John Randolph of Roanoke
'righteous overmuch' or of 'methodistical notions/ Thine in
truth, J. R. of R. Let Meade know the glad tidings, and let
him, if he has kept it, read and preserve my letter to him from
Richmond years ago."*
Looking back a few weeks later over the long pathway,
strewn with pitfalls, and enveloped in obscurity, which he
had trod, Randolph wrote of his conversion to Wm.
Meade : * * I can compare it to nothing so well as the dawn-
ing Sim after a dark, tempestuous night. ***
It would take us too far afield to quote very freely from
the numerous letters written by Randolph on such topics.
Moreover, religious as the world still is, the morbid psy-
chology, revealed by these letters, is more or less obsolete.
Oil the principle, however, of ex pede Herculem we will
bring two more of them to the attention of the reader.
Both were written to Dr. Brockenbrough.
(I)
'*It was to me a subject of deep regret that I was obliged
to leave town before Mr. Meade's arrival. I promised myself
much comfort and improvement from his conversation. My
dear sir, there is, or there is not, another and a better world.
If there is, as we all believe, what is it but madness to be
absorbed in the cares of a clay-built hovel, held at will, un-
mindful of the rich inheritance of an imperishable palace, of
which we are immortal heirs? We acknowledge these things
with our lips, but not with our hearts; we lack faith.
** We would serve God; provided we may serve Mammon at
the same time. For my part, could I be brought to believe
that this life must be the end of my being, I should be disposed
to get rid of it as an incumbrance. If what is to come, be
anything like what is passed, it would be wise to abandon the
hulk to the underwriters, the worms. I am more and more
convinced that, with a few exceptions, this world of ours is a
vast mad-house. The only men I ever knew well, ever
« Roanoke, Sept. 7. 1818, Garland, v. 2, 99,
'Roanoke, Dec. 21, 18 18, Misc. Randolph Letters, Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 657
approached closely, whom I did not discover to he unhappy,
are sincere believers of the Gospel, and conform their lives,
as far as the nature of man can permit, to its precepts. There
are only three of them. [Meade, Hoge, Key?] And yet.
Ambition, and Avarice, and Pleasure, as it is called, have their
temples crowded with votaries, whose own experience has
proved to them the insufficiency and emptiness of their pur-
suits, and who obstinately turn away from the only waters
that can slake their dying thirst and heal their diseases.
** One word on the subject of your own state of mind. I am
well acquainted with it — too well. Like you, I have not
reached that lively faith which some more favored persons
enjoy. But I am persuaded that it can and will be attained
by all who are conscious of the depravity of our nature, of their
own manifold departures from the laws of God, and sins
against their own conscience; and who are sincerely desirous
to accept of pardon on the terms held out in the Gospel.
Without puzzUng ourselves, therefore, with subtle disquisitions,
let us ask, are we conscious of the necessity of pardon? are we
willing to submit to the terms offered to us — to consider
Christianity as a scheme imperfectly understood, planned by
Infinite Wisdom, and canvassed by finite comprehensions — ^to
ask of our Heavenly Father that faith and that strength which
by our own unassisted efforts we can never attain? To me it
would be a stronger objection to Christianity, did it contain
nothing which baffled my comprehension, than its most
difficult doctrines. What professor ever delivered a lecture
that his scholars were not at a loss to comprehend some parts
of it? But that is no objection to the doctrine. But the
teacher here is God ! I may deceive myself, but I hope that I
have made some progress; so small indeed that I may be
ashamed of it, in this necessary work, even since I saw you. I
am no disciple of Calvin or Wesley, but I feel the necessity of a
changed nature; of a new life; of an altered heart. I feel my
stubborn and rebellious nature to be softened, and that it is
essential to my comfort here, as well as to my future welfare, to
cultivate and cherish feelings of good will towards all man-
kind; to strive against envy, malice, and all uncharitableness.
I think I have succeeded in forgiving all my enemies. There
VOL. II — 4a
658 John Randolph of Roanoke
is not a human being that I would htirt, if it were in my power;
not even Bonaparte."'
(2)
** As well as very bad implements and worse eyes will permit
me to do it by candlelight, I will endeavor to make some return
to your kind letter, which I received, not by Quashee, but the
mail. I also got a short note by him, for which I thank you.
. . . And now, my dear friend, one word in your ear — ^in
the porches of thine ear. With Archimedes, I may cry Eureka.
Why, what have you fotmd — the philosopher's stone? No —
something better than that. Gyges* ring ? No. A substitute
for bank paper? No. The elixir vitcs, then? It is; but it is
the elixir of eternal life. It is that peace of God which passeth
all understanding, and which is no more to be conceived of by
the material heart than poor St. George can be made to feel and
taste the difference between the Italian and German music.
It is a miracle, of which the person, upon whom it is wrought,
alone is conscious — as he is conscious of any other feeling — e,g,
whether the friendship he professes for A or B be a real senti-
ment of his heart, or simulated to serve a turn.
"God, my dear friend, hath visited me in my desolation; in
the hours of darkness, of sickness, and of sorrow: of that worst
of all sickness, sickness of the heart, for which neither wealth
nor power can find or afford a cure. May you, my dear friend,
find it, where alone it is to be found ! in the sacred volume —
in the word of God, whose power surpasseth all that human
imagination (unassisted by grace) can conceive. I am now;
for the first time in my life, supplied with a motive of action
that never can mislead me — the love of God and my neighbor
— because I love God. All other motives I feel, by my own
experience, in my own person, as well as in that of numerous
'friends' (so called), to be utterly worthless. God hath at last
given me courage to confess him before men. Once I hated
mankind — bitterly hated them — ^but loved (like that wretched
man, Swift) *Joh^^ or Thomas.' Now, my regard for in-
dividuals is not lessened, but my love for the race exalted
almost to a level with that of my friends — I am obliged to use
* Roanoke, July 4i i8i5» Garland, v. 2, 68.
Randolph as a Man 659
the word. I pretend to no sudden conversion, or new or great
lights. I have stubbornly held out, for more than a Trojan
siege, against the goodness and mercy of my creator. Yes —
Troy town did not so long and so obstinately resist the con-
federated Greeks. But what is the wrath of the swift-footed
Achilles to the wrath of God? and what his speed to the
vengeance of heaven? and what are these even to the love of
Jesus Christ, thou Son of David? I have often asked, but it
was without sufficient htunility; or, perhaps, like the Canaan-
itish woman, God saw fit to try me. I sought, but not with
sufficient diligence — at least, deserted in my utmost need, (not
indeed like Darius, great and good — ^for I could command
service, such as we often pay to God — lip service and eye
service), desolate and abandoned by all that had given me
reason to think they had any respect and affection for me, I
knocked with all my might. I asked for the cnunbs that
otherwise might be swept out to the dogs, and there was opened
to me the full and abundant treasury of his grace. When this
happened, I cannot tell. It has broken upon me like the dawn
I see every morning, insensibly changing darkness into light.
My slavish fears of punishment, which I always knew to be
sinftd, but would not put off, are converted into an humble
hope of a seat, even if it be the lowest, in the courts of God.
Yes, at last I am happy — as happy as man can be. Should it
please God to continue his favor to me, you will see it — not
only on my lips, but in my life. Should he withdraw it, as
assuredly he will, unless with his assistance I hiunbly endeavor
by prayer and self-denial, and doing of his word as well as hear-
ing it, to obtain its continuance, mine will only be the deeper
damnation. Of this danger I am sensible, but not afraid. I
mean slavishly afraid. He that hath quenched the smoking
flax, who has snatched me as a brand from the burning, will
not, I humbly yet firmly trust, cast me back into the furnace.
I now know the meaning of words that before I repeated, but
did not comprehend. I am no Burley of Balfour, but I have
been, as I thought, on the very verge and brink of his disease;
but I prayed to God to save me, and not to suffer me to fall a
prey to the arts and wiles of Satan, at the very moment I was
seeking his reconcilement.
660 John Randolph of Roanoke
'1 am not mad, most noble Pestus, but speak the words of
truth and soberness. I have thrown myself, reeking with sin,
on the mercy of God, through Jesus Christ his blessed Son
and, our (yes, my friend, our) precious Redeemer; and I have
assurance as strong as that I now owe nothing to your Bank.
that the debt is paid; and now I love God, and with reason.
I once hated him, and with reason too, for I knew not Christ.
The only cause why I should love God is his goodness and
mercy to me through Christ. But for this, the lion and the
sea-serpent would not be more appalling to my imagination
than a being of tremendous and definite power, who made me
what I am — who wanted either the will or the ability to pre-
vent the existence of evil, and punishes what is inevitable.
This is not a God, but a Devil, and all unbelievers in God
tremble and believe in this Devil that they worship — such
worship as it is, in his place. I have been looking over some
of my marginal pencilled notes on Gibbon, and rubbing them
out. I had thought to bum the book, but the Quarterly Re-
view and Professor Porson have furnished the antidote to his
poison, whether in the shape of infidelity or obscenity. See
Review of Gibbon's Posthtunous works.
***Chains are the portion of revolted man,
Stripes and a dungeon; and his body serves
The triple purpose. In that sickly, foul.
Opprobrious residence he finds them all.'
Cowper's Task.
God hath called me to come out from among them — ^the
worshippers of Mammon or of 'Moloch homicide,' of 'Chemos,
the obscene dread of Moab's son,' *Peor, his other name':
*''Lust hard by Hate,'
and I will come so help me God!
*ls it madness to prefer your new house in fee simple, to a
clay cottage, of which I am a tenant at will, and may be
turned out at a moment's warning, and even without it; and
out of which I know I must be turned in a few years certainly?
**It is now midnight. May God watch over our sleep — over
Randolph as a Man 66i
our helpless, naked condition, and protect us as well from
the insect that carries death in its sting, as from the more
feared but not so obvious dangers with which life is beset ; and,
if he should come this night (as come he will) like a thief, may
we be ready to stand in his presence and plead not our merits,
but his stripes, by whom we are made whole. J. R. of R.
"P.S. I was not aware of the length to which my sermon
would extend. Let me entreat you again to read Milton and
Cowper. They prepared me for the *Samson' (as Rush would
say) among the medicines for the soul.'**
One of the effects of the full maturity of Randolph's
spiritual re-birth was to chill his interest in politics.
Immediately after his election to Congress in 1815, he
wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough :
**I got here today. Tomorrow we are to begin our in-
quisition (a contested election). This business does not suit
me at all. My thoughts are running in a far different channel.
I never feel so free from uneasiness as when I am reading the
Testament, or hearing some able preacher. This great concern
presses me by day and by night, almost to the engrossing of my
thoughts. It is first in my mind when I awake, and the last
when I go to sleep. I think it becomes daily more clear to me.
All other things are as nothing when put in comparison with it.
You have had a great comfort in the presence of Mr. Meade.
I too, am not without some consolation; for I have received
a letter from Frank Key that I would not exchange for the
largest btmdle of bank notes that you ever signed.*' '
Another effect of religion upon Randolph's nature was
to fill him with a sense of humility, which he had never
before known : ' * If I cotdd have my way, *' he said to Key
in one of his letters, * * I wotdd retire to some retreat far
from the strife of the world and pass the remnant of my
days in meditation and prayer; and yet this would be a
' Roanoke, Aug. 25, 1818, So. Lit. Mess.^ v. 2, 8; July, 1836, pp. 461, 462.
* Buckingham C. H., May 29, 18 15; Garland, v. 2., 65.
662 John Randolph of Roanoke
life of ignoble security. " * In the same letter, he told Key
that there were two ways only, in his opinion, in which he
might be serviceable to mankind; one was in teaching
children, and that he had some thoughts of establishing
a school.
'*Then again," he added, "it comes into my head that I
am borne away by a transient enthusiasm, or that I may be
reduced to the condition of some unhappy fanatics who mis-
take the perversion of their intellects for the conversion of
their hearts. Pray for me."
After this change took place in Randolph, it was
observed that, when Dr. Hoge dined with him at Roanoke,
he always seated himself at the foot of his table, and
placed Dr. Hoge at its head ; and here, as well as elsewhere,
we might mention the fact that for this celebrated divine
he felt the highest degree of admiration.
**I consider Dr. Hoge," he once said, **as the ablest and
most interesting speaker that I ever heard in the pulpit or out
of it; and the most perfect pattern of a Christian teacher that
I ever saw. His life affords an example of the great truths of
the doctrine that he dispenses to his flock ; and, if he has a fault,
'which being mortal I suppose he cannot be free from,' I have
never heard it pointed out."*
In speaking of Randolph at divine service in West-
minster Abbey in 1822, Harvey says:
"Most audibly and solemnly did Randolph repeat the
responses. His figure, his voice, his solemnity of manner were
so striking the persons present eyed him with no small curios-
ity, and I caught even the Reverend Clergyman's gaze more
than once fixed upon him; but he noticed them not, so com-
pletely were his feelings enlisted in the simple services of the
altar. "3
« May 31, 1815, /(i., 66.
* Garland, v. 2, 64. » The New Mirror, v. 2, 29.
Randolph as a Man 663
We also leam from Harvey that, when Randolph was
crossing the Atlantic with him in 1822, he read aloud an
extract from the Bible and a part of the Episcopal service
each Simday, except when he was prevented by bad
weather or ill-health, once delivered an extemporaneous
prayer, and on Good Friday composed some religious
observations suitable to the day, which were expressed
in the purest English . *
But most grateful after all is the sober testimony ren-
dered by Wm. Leigh in the Randolph will litigation, to the
real change of heart which religious conversion produced
in Randolph.
Another result was a quickened sensitiveness on his
part to his character as a slave-holder, which led him to
accumulate a sum of money for the purpose of defraying
the expense of emancipating his slaves, and establishing
them in life. This fund was lost by the failure of Tomp-
kins and Murray in 18 19.*
Of course, as time elapsed, and Randolph's spiritual
convulsion abated, leaving him fully subject to all his
natural impulses and all the excitement of public life, he
became involved occasionally in inconsistencies between
religious profession and practice, which were by no means
edifying to a straight-laced Christian. In his observations
on John Randolph's religious character, it is quite obvious
that Bishop Meade, whom Randolph in the meridian of
his religious enthusiasm, had sometimes gone all the way
from Washington to Christ Church, at Alexandria, to
hear preach, ^ had grave doubts as to whether Randolph
could be safely held up as an example of the full efficacy
of Grace. ^ More than one amusing story is told of the
dexterous shifts to which Randolph, between the ready
* The New Mirror, v. i, 346.
» J. R. to F. S. Key, May 3, 1819, Garland, v. 2, 106.
* Old Churches, etc., by Meade (Phil., 1910), v. i, 33.
*Id. (note).
664 John Randolph of Roanoke
spur of his quick temper and his desire to maintain a
reputation for religious conformity, was driven, when he
found it necessary to convince a Southside Virginia pietist
that the word **damn " was nothing more than an equiva-
lent for the word ** condemn." The incompatibility
between the hair-triggered temper and religious decorum
was especially pronounced, it is hardly necessary to say,
during seasons of mental disturbance. An illustracion
of this fact, at once sad and amusing, is recalled in the
Reminiscences of John Randolph by the Rev. R. L. Dabney,
to which we have already referred.
**It is well known that after Mr. Randolph's religious
impression began, he was zealous for the Christian instruction
of his negroes. There was a large room near his cottage,
where he assembled them for worship, and where he often read
the Scriptures to them and instructed them himself. After his
health declined, he made a contract with some respectable
Christian minister to give his people an afternoon service.
At one time, he had such an engagement with the Rev. Abner
Clopton, an excellent Baptist divine of Charlotte County.
Mr. Carrington's statement to me was that Mr. Clopton
himself related the following incident. He went to Roanoke
from his morning appointment near Scuffletown, and dined
with Mr. Randolph, as he was accustomed on the days of his
appointment. After dinner, Mr. Randolph accompanied him
to the log chapel, and they found it full of negroes. Mr.
Clopton said that he behaved with all the seriousness of a
Presbyterian elder. Knowing the weakness of the negroes
for a religion more emotional than sanctifying, he aimed his
sermon strongly against the Antinomian abuse of the gospel.
When the services were about to end, Mr. Randolph rose and
spoke in substance thus: Rev. Sir, I crave your permission
to add my poor word of confirmation to the excellent instruc-
tion you have given these people. My excuse must be my
great solicitude for the welfare of the souls of these dependents
of mine. Mr. Clopton told him that certainly he should feel
at liberty to instruct his servants, for nobody had a better
Randolph as a Man 665
right to do it than the master. Mr. Randolph then arose,
and began with great point, and in most excellent scripttiral
language, to enforce the doctrine that the faith which did not
produce good works could not justify. From being solemn
and emphatic, he grew excited and then sarcastic. He
described the type of religion too current among negroes,
which made them sing and bow and shout and weep in their
meetings, but which failed to restrain them from gross immo-
ralities. This spuriotis fanaticism he scathed with the keen-
est sarcasm. At last, he evidently lost control of himself;
singling out a young buck negro on the third bench from the
front, who had been very emphatic in his amens and such like
manifestations of piety, he shook his long forefinger at him,
and said: 'Here is this fellow Phil. In the meeting on Sun-
day, he is the foremost man to sing and shout and get happy,
and, on Sunday night, he is the first man to steal his master's
shoats— the damned rascal!* Mr. Clopton laid his hand on
his arm in protest, saying: *Mr. Randolph, Mr. Randolph!*
He instantly stopped in the most deferential manner, and asked
Mr. Clopton what correction he had to offer. He replied:
*He thought it his duty to protest against the terms which
Mr. Randolph was employing. ' * What terms ? ' * Why those
in which you have just addressed that man Phil. It can never
be proper in teaching God*s truth to use any profanity, seeing
God has forbidden it.' Randolph replied: *Sir, you both
astonish and mortify me. I had hoped that, if my credit as
a Christian was so poor (and I know that I am but a sorry
Christian) as not to save me from the imputation of profanity,
my credit, as a gentleman, should have done so. I had flat-
tered myself that I should be judged incapable of insulting a
minister of otir holy religion, while my own guest, by using
profanity in his presence.' This view of the matter rather
provoked Mr. Clopton, and he insisted that the terms, in
which he had rebuked the negro, were not only cruelly severe
but distinctly profane, and that in the midst of a religious
service. 'What then did I say to him that was so bad?'
* Why, Sir, you called him in expressed words 'a danmed rascal !'
* And you misunderstood that as an intentional profanity ? You
fill me with equal surprise and mortification. I considered
666 John Randolph of Roanoke
myself as only stating a theological truth in terms of faith-
ful plainness. Do not the sacred Scriptures say that thieves
are liable to the condemnation of the Divine Judge? And is
not this just the meaning of the term which you say I used?*
Mr. Clopton said this ttirn quite took his breath -away, and
he thought it best not to continue the discussion. " *
But all the same, it is undoubtedly true that the reli-
gious impressions stamped on Randolph's mind in child-
hood, and afterwards renewed by the throes, through
which he passed between 1810 and 18 19, were never
wholly effaced. Indeed, they never seemed so natural
or genuine as during those rare moments in his latter
years when his soul, like that of Saul, freed from the evil
spirit that persecuted him, was at peace.
** Mr. Pinkney, whom I heard and saw a day or two ago in
the pride of life," he wrote to his niece, **is now an almost
insensible and helpless corpse. Perhaps our souls may be
demanded this night. May we be able to say on that (as on
every other) occasion, awful as it is, *Thy will be done.'*'*
In the same year he wrote to his niece:
**God bless you and all that are dear to you, and may the
chastening of that heavenly Father, who scourgeth every
son, that he receiveth, purify our hearts that we may become
dwellers in the mansions prepared for them that believe in his
most blessed son, our Precious Redeemer, and earnestly
implore His aid to do His will on earth; as it is in heaven.
Which may He in His infinite good and mercy grant for Jesus
Christ sake. Amen. Yotir uncle and friend, John Randolph. " ^
Some five years later, he wrote to the same beloved
object of his affections: "That you think of me before
committing yourself to rest is a grateful circumstance.
' Union Seminary Magazine, v. 6, 1894-95, 14-21.
• Feb. 19, 1822, Bryan MSS.
« Jan. II, 1822, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 667
Remember me in your prayers."' These letters, be it
remembered, were written to a young girl on whom he
was simply lavishing the unaffected language of his
spontaneous thoughts and feelings.
Some of the remarkable entries made by Randolph in
one of his journals, during the period in 1818, when his
religious mania was at its height, are not without interest.
One, under date of Aug. 26, is : " Tempted and did not
fall. Praised be His holy name. ** ' Another, under date
of Aug. 27 : * * Tempted again, and was falling, but arrested
by the hand of God. Repent and am ashamed.'*^ A
month later, he fell all the way to the groimd, because,
under date of Sept. 27, he enters these words: "Sin,
repent."^ "Oh! night of bliss," "This morning God
gives me leave to look over my old papers," are other
jottings.
These entries were made when the stream of his religious
thoughts had not worked itself free from its turbid ele-
ments. A few years later, when it had deposited its
sediment, and was no longer chafed by the rocks and
shoals of spiritual anxieties and fears, it was a very differ-
ent thing. "He was habitual in his reverential regard
for the divinity of our religion," we are told by Benton,
* * and one of his beautiful expressions was that * if woman
had lost us paradise, she had gained us heaven. "^ And
truly, like a song in the night, must have been the rhap-
sody which fell from his lips in the presence of Benton
during the last months of his life, when, between mental
distractions, bodily disease, and the lenitives, to which he
resorted to assuage intolerable distress, he was as deserving
of the pity of God as any object upon which it has ever
been bestowed :
« Washington, Feb. 2, 1827, Bryan MSS.
* Libr. Cong.
3 Id, * Id.
^30 Year:t* View, 475.
668 John Randolph of Roanoke
"The last time I saw him (in that last visit to Washington
after his return from the Russian Mission, and when he was
in full view of death)," Benton sajrs, "I heard him read the
chapter in the Revelations (of the opening of the seals) with
such power and beauty of voice and delivery, and such depth
of pathos that I felt as if I had never heard the chapter read
before. When he had got to the end of the opening of the
sixth seal, he stopped the reading, laid the book (open at the
place) on his breast, as he lay on his bed, and began a discourse
upon the beauty and sublimity of the Scriptural writings,
compared to which he considered all htunan compositions
vain and empty. Going over the images, presented by the
opening of the seals, he averred that their divinity was in
their sublimity, that no htunan power could take the same
images and inspire the same awe, and terror, and sink our-
selves into such nothingness in the presence of the 'wrath of
the Lamb, ' that he wanted no proof of their divine origin but
the sublime feelings which they inspired."'
* * It woidd have been as easy for a mole to have written
Sir Isaac Newton's Treatise on Optics, " he declared on
another occasion, *'as for uninspired men to have written
the Bible. "»
It is a just remark of Parton that Randolph's political
influence was enhanced by his high social position^; and
another thing that helped to bring his figure out in high
relief was the fact that he was the owner of a large planta-
tion, and many hundreds of negroes. In other words, he
belonged to a class of which Randolph himself said, with
some truth, that it was as much a nobility as if it had been
composed of Dukes, Earls, or Barons. ^
In addition to his other lands, Randolph was also the
owner for a time of a farm of 400 acres, called '*the Mich-
eaux place, '* in Cimiberland Coimty, Va., which he sold,
' 30 Yeats* View, 475.
» Bouldin, 87.
3 Famous Americans, 198.
< J. R. to — , Washington, May 6, 1826.
Randolph as a Man 669
in 1 81 6, to Thomas A. Morton.* After his death his
estate was also compelled to pay about $14,000 for a tract
in Chesterfield County which he had contracted to buy
from Benjamin Moody.' And his correspondence with
Gamett shows that he was eager at one time to acquire
an estate between the James and Rappahannock called
Port Tobago. ^
Koanoke was divided into three shifts, known as the
I'^erry Quarter, the Middle Quarter, and the Lower Quar-
ter; and the two dwellings, in which Randolph resided,
were situated on the Middle Quarter. To the Staimton
River, which boimded Roanoke on the South, there is a
happy allusion in one of his letters to Josiah Quincy :
"It rises,*' he said, "beyond the Blue Ridge, indeed in the
Alleghany Mountains; passes through the counties of Mont-
gomery and Botetourt under its right name; issues from the
mountains incog,, under the appellation of Staunton; here
receives the Little Roanoke; and, on its junction with the
Dan, about 30 miles below, resumes its true name, which it
retains during the remainder of its course to the Sound. "^
At this day it is difficult to realize how remote and
secluded Roanoke was. Richmond, nearly a himdred
miles oflf, was the nearest town to it of any considerable
importance, except Petersburg, a place of only 8,322
inhabitants even in 1830.* As late as 1840, Lynchburg
had a population of but some 5,000 persons*; and, as late
as 1847, Danville was a town of only about 1,500 inhabi-
tants.' Norfolk was some 160 or so miles away. To
secure the household commodities that he needed, and to
' Cumberland C. H., Deed Book, 16, p. 8.
' Volume relating to Randolph's Adm. vs, Hobson, Va. State Libr.
» Jan. 14, 1813, J. M. Gamett, Jr., MSS.
4 July 4, 1814, Life of Quincy, 356.
KHisL Colls, of Va., by Howe, 242.
«/J., 211.
iJd,, 429.
670 John Randolph of Roanoke
find a vent for the produce of his lands, Randolph main-
tained what was practically a wagon line between Roanoke
and Richmond, and repeatedly in his correspondence we
find references to his wagoner, Quashee, who, with Simon
and other wagoners of his, must have been almost per-
petually on the road hauling tobacco, wheat or flour from
Roanoke to Richmond, and herdsgrass seed, clover seed,
plaster, and domestic commodities of all sorts from Rich-
mond to Roanoke. The nearest postoffice to Roanoke
was at Charlotte Court House, 12 or 13 miles distant.'
When we recall the ubiquitous service, which now brings
the federal mail every secular day of the week practically
to the door-step of every negro cabin in Charlotte County,
we can scarcely refrain from smiling when we read these
words in a letter written by Randolph to Dr. Dudley in
1810: ** Direct to Charlotte C. H., 'Roanoke, near Char-
lotte C. H., Va. * "' As late as the year 1832, Randolph
told Nathan Loughborough that he had been reduced to
sending three times and often four times a week to Char-
lotte Court House for his mail. ^ (a)
Living under such circumstances of isolation, it is not
surprising that he should have written to Dr. Brocken-
brough from Oakland, the home of his friend, Wm. R.
Johnson, in 1829: **I shall with a sick heart, as well as
dead, try to get to my lair by the middle of next week. "*
In the first year of the 19th century, when he was
residing at Bizarre, his postal facilities were even more
limited ; for in that year he wrote, to Nicholson that the
post arrived but once a week at the little village (Parm-
ville) adjacent to his residence. ^
Roanoke produced large quantities of tobacco. In
1 8 10, before its acreage had been enlarged by subsequent
« Garland, v. 2, 39.
* Roanoke, Oct. 29, 18 10, Letters tea Y, R,, 74.
J Roanoke, Feb. 16, 1832, Nathan Loughborough MSS.
< Nov. 26, 1829, Mo. Hist. Soc.
« July I, 1800, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 671
purchases, it produced 49 hogsheads of tobacco and 1,541
barrels of com. ' The tobacco, grown on Roanoke in that
year, however, should not be accepted as its standard of
production, since we are informed by Randolph that its
tobacco crop in 1810 was *'very indifferent."^ In 1814,
no less than 430,000 hills of tobacco were destroyed by the
great freshet of that year on the Roanoke lowgrounds
alone, besides com, oats, and wheat. ^ In the succeeding
year, Randolph wrote to his friend, David Parish, that,
notwithstanding the unfavorable season, he had made the
greatest crop ever raised at Roanoke. "This,*' he said,
"I calculate will make me a return of from $20,000 to
$25,000 — a small affair for you great nabobs, who deal in
millions of money and himdreds of thousands of acres of
land."^ During the career of Randolph, the market
prices of tobacco underwent violent fluctuations. In
1805, when he was still residing at Bizarre, he wrote to
Nicholson that the merchants in Richmond had offered
him no more than $7.00 per himdred-weight for his
tobacco.^ In 1814, when the War of 1812 was under
way, he wrote to Josiah Quincy that tobacco had sold in
Richmond as high as $13.10 per hundred-weight*; and,
in 1 8 16, he informed Dr. Dudley from Richmond that he
had sold his tobacco for $20.00 per hundred-weight, pay-
able in the succeeding July. *
A few weeks later when at Roanoke he wrote to Dr.
Dudley that a general apprehension of famine pervaded
the land, and that $6.00 and $7.50 had been given in
advance for new com from the stack. ' In the letter to
Nicholson, to which we have just referred, he stated
that he had lost nearly $1,000 by the recent fall in the
' J. R.'s Diary. * Id,
i Roanoke, Oct. 30, 1815, Beverley D. Tucker MSB.
* Richm., Apr. 12, 1805, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
sRichm., March i, 181 4, Life of Quincy j 350.
*Aug. 10, 1 8 16, Letters to a Y. R., 178.
»Sept. 3, 1816, /J., 179.
672 John Randolph of Roanoke
«
price of flour, but that, by the sale of both his flour and his
tobacco, he hoped to raise enough money to pay his debts
at home, and to leave him $3,000 or $4,000 for a voyage
to Europe, which he contemplated. At the time of
Randolph's death, he is said to have had more than
$20,000 in bank ; but this balance may have been derived
in part from the sums which he received as Minister to
Russia.
But to the general reader more interesting than the
tobacco and com grown on the Roanoke estate were the
horses reared on it by Randolph, either for his own personal
use or for the competitions of the race track. Prom his
early manhood until the day when he sat up on his death-
bed at Philadelphia, cracking his coach whip, he was
passionately addicted to horses, and to all the diffiecent
forms of recreation and sport to which they mmia^
Nicholson, it seems, had some kinsman who shared Ran-
dolph's tastes in this respect, for, in 1802, Rando^dli, on
his return to Bizarre from Congress, by way of Ridunand,
wrote to Nicholson that he had seen Nicholson's ''little
nabob" uncle beaten for three successive days, to his
irrepressible mortification.
**Desdemona, that jewel which thousands were sacrifioed
to obtain, " Randolph ftirther said, "is now of as little worth
as her biped namesake, after the frantic Moor had wrecked
his jealous fury on her fair form. "^
In 1805, Randolph wrote to Nicholson that the
at Richmond were over, and that Mr. Selden had started
a colt of his that had run with great credit three heats of
4 miles each, but had not won.' Indeed, it is said by
W. B. Green, one of Randolph's neighbors, that Randolph
was generally unsuccessful on the turf. ^
' Bizarre, May 9, 1802, Nicholson MSS., Libr, Cong.
"Richm., Oct. 12, 1805, Id,
* Bouldin, 25.
HN RANDOLPH OF nOANOKI
By WUlum Hawy Bnnra.
Randolph as a Man 673
One of the features of the races which were the subject
of Randolph's letter to Nicholson, was a great match for
$3,000 between Mr. Tayloe's Peacemaker, 5 years old
(118 lbs.), and Mr. Batt*s Florizet, 4 years old (106 lbs.) ;
both by Diomed. It was won by Florizet, Randolph said
in a subsequent letter to Nicholson, in a canter. *
*'Thus you see," he observed, "whilst you ttirbulent folks
on the east of Chesapeake are wrangling about Snyder and
McKean. we old Virginians are keeping it up more majorutn.
De gustibus nan est disputandum, sajrs the proverb. Never-
the-less, I cannot envy the taste of him who finds more amuse-
ment in the dull scurrility of a newspaper than in Weatherby's
Calendar, and prefers an election ground to a race field. "
And few persons, even professional turfmen, we venture
to say, have ever been more familiar with Weatherby's
calendar than Randolph. Convincing evidence of this
fact is to be f oimd in more than one letter from his hand,
including one which he addressed to his friend, John S.
Skinner, of Baltimore, in which he called oflf the names of
celebrated horses, as if his life had mainly been spent in
the pasture field and on the judge's stand at race courses. *
It was an easy thing to inflame his pride about one of his
horses. On one occasion, he offered for sale at public
auction one of his best stallions, Roanoke, by the famous
Old Sir Archie out of Lady Bunsbury. For a considerable
time, there was no bid made, but, at length, Hugh Wyllie,
the owner of Marske, a renowned race horse, bid £50;
whereupon Randolph flared up in flaming indignation,
and, turning a face full of anger to Wyllie, exclaimed:
**Do you, Sir, bid £50 for a horse that pushed Marske up
to the throat-latch?" There was a dead silence, and
Roanoke was led away imsold. ^
' Bizarre, Oct. 23, 1815, Nicholson MSB., Libr. Cong.
'Roanoke, Apr. 10, 1830, Md, Hist, Soc.
> Bouldin, 26.
VOL. 11—43
674 John Randolph of Roanoke
One of the most famous races ever attended by Ran-
dolph was that on Long Island in 1823, between Eclipse,
the pride of the North, and Henry, the pride of the South.
In its day, this race stirred up fully as much popular
excitement as the subsequent debate between Webster
and Hayne. Just as the two horses were about to start
off, a stranger walked up to Randolph, and oflFered to
bet $500 on Eclipse. "Done," Randolph said. "Col.
Thompson will hold the stakes, " said the stranger. "Who
will hold Col. Thompson," replied Randolph — a reply
which has been frequently repeated on race tracks from
that day to this. ' During this race, Randolph is said to
have stood in a very conspicuous position, surroimded by
rival backers of the two sections, and, misled by his dis-
position to disparage what he once called the wrong side
of the Potomac, he was very confident of the success of
Henry. Afterwards, when the host of assembled spec-
tators were vociferously applauding Purdy, the jockey
who had ridden the victprious Eclipse, he was heard saying
in his satirical accents: "Well, gentlemen, it is a lucky
thing for the country that the President of the United
States is not elected by acclamation, else Mr, Purdy would
be our next President beyond a doubt.'' ^ When Jared
Sparks was in Richmond in May, 1 726, one of the years
in which Randolph lost his mental balance, he found the
whole town, gentlemen, ladies, mechanics, and negroes,
agog with excitement over the pending races. "John
Randolph was here yesterday, '* he said, "with the appear-
ance and manners of a madman. He carried in his hand
a large purse of silver coin. With this he went to the
races. He talked wildly and behaved extravagantly."^
In reading Randolph's letters, we are struck, first, with
the great nimiber of his horses, and, secondly, with the
« Bouldin, 26.
« The New Mirror, v. 2, 43.
* Life of Sparks, by Adams, v. i, 454.
Randolph as a Man 675
strong feeling of personal attachment that he cherished
for them. In one of his letters to Dr. Dudley, he speaks
of his numerous idle horses, and we can readily believe
that the adjectives were not misapplied. Both when he
lived at Bizarre and Roanoke, he frequently mentioned
his horses by name in his correspondence with his friends.
In his letters to Dr. Dudley, while he still lived at Bizarre,
he often refers to his favorites in language that trenches
closely upon the affection of one human being for another.
**I hope," he wrote on one occasion, "Mr. Galding will
attend to poor little Minikin. " * On another occasion, he
wrote:
"How does the stock fare this bad weather? Are the Sans-
Culottes fillies in good plight? An account of matters on the
plantation might supply the subject of a letter. How is poor
old Jacobin? and all the rest of the houyhnhnmns?**'
Sans-Culotte and Jacobin, of course, were given their
names at the beck of the same Gallomania which led
Joseph Bryan to speak of Randolph's little godson as
** Citizen Randolph." Could the Jacobin mentioned by
Randolph in his letter to Dr. Dudley have been the Jaco-
bin that he says in his 1830 journal that he had sold to
David Sims for $150?^ If so, the price was no greater
than the one at which he wrote to Dr. Dudley on one
occasion that he had sold each of his colts. ^ For Ran-
dolph's day, the general run of his horses commanded
very good prices, and by his neighbor, W. B. Green, we
are told that, after his death, his stud of blooded horses
brought high prices at auction, and were, in many
instances, purchased by gentlemen who resided outside of
the State of Virginia.^ "If anyone will give you $1,000
« March 18, 1808, LetUrs toa Y. R,,^.
'Georgetown, Feb. 12, 1808, Id,, 46.
i Va, HisL Soc,
*Richm., May 16, 18 14, Letters to a Y. R., 158.
9 Bouldin, 26.
676 John Randolph of Roanoke
for Gracchus, " he wrote to Dr. Dudley, ''take it. "' We
know, too, that he was once offered for one of his saddle
horses $500. '
It evidently cost him a considerable twinge of pain to
sell any of his pets. After selling two saddle horses —
Bloomsbury and Fidget — ^to his friend David Parish, of
Philadelphia, he wrote to Dr. Dudley, who was in Phila-
delphia at the time, that in reminding him of them,
Dr. Dudley had recalled to his memory some unpleasant,
at least mournful, recollections.^ Minimus, **his little
bay," Duette, Brunette, Hyperion, to whom he deemed
every rival but a satyr. Everlasting, Spot, Roanoke,
Topaz, Rosetta, Boojet, Witch, Rob Roy, Black Warrior,
Yellow Jacket, Gascoigne, Jimius, "the finest horse and
foal-getter in the world," Fairy Queen, Agnes Sorel,
Wildfire, Fidget, Bloomsbury, John Hancock, RinaldO;
Earl Grey, Miss Peyton, Hob, Ranger, Never Tire, and
Daredevil are some of the names which ttim up in Ran-
dolph's journals and letters in connection with his stables
and pastures.
"We are burnt to a cinder, '* he wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough
in 1828, ** although I had beautiful verdure this summer tintil
late in July; but, if you could see but my colt Topaz, out of
Ebony, my filly Sylph, out of Witch, or my puppy Ebony,
you would admit that the wonders of the world were ten, and
these three of them. "^
Randolph raised horses of all sorts — ^race horses, draft
horses, and saddle horses, (a) What some of them were
we can well judge from their names, to say nothing of
perilous situations in which at least one of them involved
him. Wildfire! (b) Daredevil! Yellow Jacket, out of
« Richm., Mar. 7, 1814, Letters toa Y. R., 15.
* Nathan Loughborough MSS.
» Georgetown, Feb. 3, 1812, 118 (note).
< Roanoke, Aug. 10, 1828, Garland, v. 2, 310.
Randolph as a Man 677
Frenzy ! we experience little difficulty in forming a mental
picture of what these nervous, mettlesome, and wicked-
eyed creatures were.
Of a very diflEerent order was his steady, trustworthy
horse Spot. *'I should like to meet Spot," he wrote to
Dr. Dudley on one occasion from Georgetown, **to take
me through the sloughs and over the ruts and gullies
between that place (Richmond) and Obsto. I shall go
via Farmville and Prince Edward Court.**' Five years
after this letter was written, Randolph wrote to Dr.
Dudley :
"Spot, I fear, is irreparably ruined by a disease which,
when of the worst type, is as incurable as the glanders or the
farcy. I succeeded, you remember, with poor old Rosetta,
but she always carried a stiff neck; but that case was treated
secundum artem, and not in the stupid, sottish style of our
soi-dtsant farriers.**'
Of all Randolph*s draft and saddle horses. Brunette
and Fidget, we should say, had the most speed and the
best bottom. Among his journal entries, is one which
states that on Sept. 23, 181 1, Randolph, behind Brunette
and Fidget, covered the distance between Roanoke and
Prince Edward Court House, 34 miles, in 4 hours and 20
minutes. All this hurry apparently was because he
wished to be on hand to hear Caleb Baker tried for miu--
der, and defended by Beverley Tucker. ^
Whatever else may have palled in his latter years upon
the interest of Randolph, his horses never did. On one
occasion, when at Roanoke, he noted that Euston had
broken his left fore-leg above the knee^; and, 8*days later,
that a foal by Hyperion out of Duchess, produce of 1809,
' Georgetown, Mar. 4, 181 7, Letters toa Y. R., 197.
* Washington, Jan. 27, 1822, Letters toa Y. R,, 243.
»J. R.'sDiary.
678 John Randolph of Roanoke
had been found dead in the pasture. ^ ' * You have never
mentioned whether the chestnut gelding colt is yet lame
or not, ** he reminds Dr. Dudley in one letter from George-
town ' ; and, three days later, he asks Dr. Dudley in another
letter: '*How is the chestnut gelding out of the blaze-
faced S. C. mare ? " ^ * * I believe I omitted to tell you that
I wished you to use Everlasting; pray be merciful to her, "
was his petition to Dr. Dudley in a third letter. ^
Nor was Randolph more passionately attached to his
horses than he was to his dogs. A fit preface to what we
shall say on this subject is his general observations in the
Diary on dogs, in which he takes ireful exception to the
opinion of Jefferson that dogs were a pernicious, at least
a useless, race, and that, to save food and put an end to
hydrophobia, measures ought to be taken by law for their
extirpation. The observations are as follows, and remind
us not a little of Byron's epitaph on Boatswain :
**The hydrophobia. Sir, is a disease of the wolf, the fox, and
domestic cat, as well as of the dog. Were the dogs all de-
stroyed, we should be overrun by them and by other vermin —
and we should deserve so to be for having, upon the principle
of cold calculation, exterminated the best friend of man.
Worthless dogs, like horses, etc., of the same description, only
prove that the breed should be more attended to. There are
thousands of horses, black cattle, etc., which serve only 'fruges
consumere* without adding anything to the stock of public
wealth; but shall we therefore extirpate those valuable species
of animals? When a law is passed to exterminate dogs, I
shall set my dogs on the officer who comes to execute it, and
back them with my gun. The only fault with which they
have been ever charged, and the only one, which, in the course
of 3,000 years' association with man, they have acquired from
him, is worrying an unhappy individual of their own species
whom they find in distress. The strongest proof, in my
»J. R.'s Diary.
* Georgetown, Feb. 8, 181 7, Letters to a Y, R., 188.
*Id., Feb. II, 1817; Id,, 189. </J., May 11, i8i2;/d., 123.
Randolph as a Man 679
opinion, of the unfitness of the dog to live is his having attached
himself exclusively to so base and ungrateful an animal as
man. If all men were like this philosopher, they would merit
that their nightly guardians, the faithful, honest dogs, should
conspire and strangle them in their sleep. Like many other
Lfaputan theories, totally mistaken in principle, object, and
result. "
To say how many dogs Randolph had in the course of
his life would be almost like trying to say how many
horses he had. In an unpublished letter before us, dated
March 4, 1833, the writer stated that Randolph was in
Washington, when she wrote, with an English chariot and
four horses, two men servants, and a bare-footed boy who
had seven dogs under his care. * Whatever change, there-
fore, may have taken place in his cynical views about
man since 1804, when his observations on dogs were
inserted in the Diary, none had taken place in his partial
estimate of dogs. More than once in letters written by
or about him, the head of a dog or puppy looks out at us
over the body of his vehicle as he flotmders along over the
long lake of mud between Washington and Richmond.
It would be curious to run down all his contemporaries
who named a son after him, or gave him a dog. Commo-
dore John Rogers, for certainty, gave him a Spanish
bloodhoimd bitch; Beaumontais, a setter; Mr. Hackley,
Judith's brother-in-law, a double-nosed Spanish pointer,
and M. DeKantzow, the Minister of His Swedish and
Norwegian Majesty, a slut of some species or other which
came to be known as Sylph, and whose only puppy,
despite her high degree, was begotten by a cur — a faux
pas that she never had an opporttmity to repeat, as she
was afterwards bitten by a mad dog, and was killed on
that accotmt ; all of which, like many other particulars of
the same sort, is duly chronicled in the Diary. '
« Mrs. Susan B. Taylor, to her nephew, Langbome M. Williams MSS.
» 1824, Journal, May 11, 1824, Va. Hist. Soc,
68o John Randolph of Roanoke
Of the double-nosed pointer, we only know that she was
stolen from the Fountain Inn in Baltimore, but was
recovered by another inn-keeper at Washington, and
turned over to Wm. Bernard, of Mansfield, the owner of
one of the famous old Virginia country seats, to whom
Randolph, true to his working principle that all life is a
commerce, ' was generous enough to resign her.
The Diary also records the fact that J. S. Skinner gave
him a setter dog, named Topaz; Dennis A. Smith, "a
rough Scotch terrier, '* named Vixen, and Elisha Hundley,
"a black puppy with white legs," named Keeper, (a)
Carlo, Echo, Sancho, Dido, Jimo, Banquo, Bibo, Caesar,
Caesar No. 2, Milo, Mina, Venus, Ebony, Lion, Tiger,
and Nero (a fine house-dog) are the names of some of the
other dogs or puppies owned at one time or another by
Randolph. '
Nor were Randolph's friends more generous in pre-
senting him with dogs than he was in returning the favor.
Another proof that, imtil Randolph's ''lonesome latter
years, " he and Robert Carrington were good friends is the
fact that the Diary records the gift by him to Carrington
of Dash, ** pupped, " Randolph declares, *'in March (late),
1826, by old Czar, the most celebrated dog between Rich-
mond and New York, out of a very fine slut. "
Sometimes, a friend would send a slut to Roanoke to be
crossed by one of his fine dogs. Thus he tells us in the
Diary that in 1822, Maj. John Nelson's setter slut was
sent to Roanoke in August of that year, and was * * warded ' '
by Bibo. For this service, he received his toll in the form
of a fine male puppy.
Nothing relating to Randolph's dogs was, in his eyes,
too trivial to be commemorated in the Diary. Dido we
know was responsive enough to bear 6 puppies to Sancho,
« Letter to J. R. Bryan, Roanoke, July 29, 1832, Dr. St. G. J. Griiman
MSS.
•J.R.'s Diary.
Randolph as a Man 68i
though he had had access to her only once; Carlo was a
latch-opener, which speaks highly at any rate for his
intelligence ; and Venus, with all the charms that her name
implies, was purchased by him from a steerage passenger
in 1826 for the paltry siun of $5.00. And, in reading the
journals and letters of Randolph, it is curious to note how
frequently his dogs, though far from being exposed to the
almost incessant peril, to which Jerw natures are, became
involved in more or less tragic casualties. It would seem
that Randolph could not always give up the companion-
ship of dogs, even when he was journeying abroad; for
Venus was purchased from a steerage passenger when his
face was set towards England, only to be lost after he
arrived there. ' The seller, Randolph says in the Diary,
with the emotion of tenderness that a child rarely failed
to arouse in him, was returning to Scotland with his wife
and "little daur Jeannie. "
When in his own coimtry not only did Randolph's dog
have the freedom of the floor of the House of Representa-
tives as fully as one of its former members, but, when he
was at Roanoke, that of the homes of his neighbors :
"Whenever he made a visit,** W. B. Green tells us, **he
brought some of his dogs with him, and they were suffered to
poke their noses into everjrthing, and to go where they pleased
from kitchen to parlor. They were a great annoyance to
ladies and house-keepers. This, however, was obliged to be
quietly submitted to, as any unkind treatment to his dogs
would have been regarded as an insult to himself. "*
Somewhere Darwin expresses the idea that to a dog,
eyeing his master, the form of the latter must present the
appearance of a demigod. To Randolph's dogs his tall,
lank figure must have been at least that of some kind of
benignant genius. Nothing can be more intensely htmian
than the unfailing interest and affection that he lavished
» J. R.'s Diary. « Bouldin, 25.
682 John Randolph of Roanoke
upon them from youth tmtil death. Like his horses, they
seemed, in his contemplation, to belong, at any rate, to
some stage of being, intermediate between the brute crea-
tion and man.
** Remember me to old Carlo, and Dido, and Sancho," he
says in one of his letters to Dr. Dudley. * (a) ** You have not
said a word about the dogs, " he complained in another letter
to Dr. Dudley' **You say nothing about the dogs. Has
Sancho recovered his eyesight ? Is Dido Kkely to have another
litter? and how comes on the puppy?" are some of the forms
that his solicitous inquiries about his dogs took when he was
absent at Babel.
Carlo, Echo, and Dido seem to have been his favorites.
In one of his letters to Dr. Dudley, after telling him that
Mr. Hackley had sent him two Spanish pointers, one
double-nosed and the only one of that species that could
be proctired, he added loyally: "However, I question if
they are better than Echo or Dido whom old Carlo is now
guarding with a Spaniard's jealousy.**^ The fracture of
**poor Sancho's'* hind leg was bad enough,^ but, when
Echo died, it was almost as if he had lost a two-footed
friend.
*'The death of poor Echo is a severe blow upon me," he
wrote to Dr. Dudley. ** 'I ne'er shall look upon her like
again, * and, among the inducements which I felt to revisit my
own comfortless home, it was not the least that I should again
see her and witness the sagacity and attachment of this humble
yet faithful four-footed friend. ***
One of the important events in Randolph's life was a
scrape in which Echo involved herself in 1810. In giving
» York Buildings, Dec. 27, 1814, Letters to a Y, R,, 170.
* Georgetown, Feb. 4, 181 7, Id., 187.
* Roanoke, Sep. 3, 181 1, Letters to a F. R,, loi.
<Apr. 8, 1816, Id., 176.
* Georgetown, June 5, 1812, Id., 124.
Randolph as a Man 683
the date of this incident, we but follow the example of
Randolph himself, who did not disdain to enter even the
date of the death of a favorite dog in the Diary. The
story is told in a letter from him to Dr. Dudley, written
just after he had returned from Mecklenburg Court to
Roanoke, where he had left Echo confined at the beginning
of his absence.
** I have just learned, " he said, ** that she went oflf yesterday
morning with the chain upon her, and I fear that the poor
thing may have gotten entangled with it, so as to prevent her
getting along, and, in that condition, may be exposed to
perish. I cannot express how much I am distressed at this
thought. I shall, therefore, dispatch Phil in the morning
with this letter in quest of her. ***
Made restless by the loss of her master. Echo had
coursed in half a night, with a trace-chain about her neck,
over the 40 miles of distance between Roanoke and
Bizarre, but had had the good sense never once to leave
the highway.* Another reference to this incident is
readable, if for no other reason, because it is a good speci-
men of the pleasing way in which Randolph's interest in
the smallest practical details could be given a graceful
turn by his literary culture:
*' I am obliged to you also, my dear Theodore, " he said in
a letter to Dr. Dudley, **for the intention with which you sent
up poor Echo, whose retreat equals that of the 10,000 under
Xenophon, although she is not likely to have so eloquent an
historian of her anabasis. "^
Echo, the reader should be told, had been a part of the
Bizarre household, before Randolph took up his perma-
nent residence at Roanoke, and, shifted from Bizarre to
' Roanoke, Aug. 6, 1810, Letters to a Y, i?., 69.
« J. R.'s Diary, Letters to a Y, R., 70.
* Roanoke, Aug. 9, 18 10, Letters toa Y. R,, 70.
684 John Randolph of Roanoke
Roanoke, did not find it easy to conquer the force of old
habits.
In going over Randolph's library at Roanoke after his
death, Hugh Blair Grigsby observed this marginal entry
in Randolph's handwriting on the leaves of one of his
books, which had been torn: "Done by Bibo when a
puppy.** The inference intended to be suggested by the
writer, of course, was that Bibo would not have been
guilty of such a shabby trick if he had arrived at years of
discretion.
And ah ! how joyously for a moment at least does the
blood surge again even in those depleted veins which
Juvenal grimly says warm with fever alone when the
superannuated sportsman reads this description in a
letter from Randolph to Theodore of Dido :
**0n Wednesday I shot with Mr. Bouldin, and I never saw
any pointer behave better than Dido, fetching the birds
excepted. I had given her some lessons in the dining-room,
and one day's previous practice by herself. She found the
birds in the highest style — stood as staunchly as old Carlo—
never flushed one and hunted with the most invincible resolu-
tion. She followed the worm of the fence through thick briere
and put up successively in each comer fifteen to twenty birds.
I was next the river; and, although I could see her, they flew
next the field except two that I killed. She was delighted to
see them fall and entered into the spirit of the sport fully."'
A fitting conclusion, perhaps, to what we have said
about Randolph and his dogs, is a letter which he wrote
to an tmknown correspondent in the year 1826.
**Mr. Randolph has received the dog, and is very much
obliged to you for him; but, at the same time, unless it be too
unreasonable, he will be very thankful for the puppy. He is
fully sensible to your kind and obliging attentions in minister-
ing to one of his ruling passions, 'Gaudet equis canibusque.'
' Roanoke, Oct. 29, 18 10, Letters toa Y. R,, 72.
Randolph as a Man 685
Be pleased to send the puppy down here by the first safe con-
veyance. Mr. Randolph can then send him around with his
other effects by the steamboat to Richmond. ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
There is constant intercourse between Petersburg and Farm-
ville by bateaux, and Farmville is the place of deposit of Mr.
Randolph's tobacco; but the mischief is that the steamboats
cannot get up to Petersburg, so that a link of ten miles land
carriage from City Point creates so much difficulty in the
communication that, except for heavy articles, that are not
liable to be injured, Richmond is the best route for
setter puppies, glass, china, and other brittle and
precious ware."'
During the shooting season, Randolph's setters and
pointers must have had a happy existence at Roanoke;
for his journals and letters are filled with the fresh, stimu-
lating breath of the autumnal fields of Southside Virginia,
and the manly joctmd sports of which they were the scene.
In all his early tastes and habits, he was a typical South-
side Virginia boy. These are the terms in which he
recalled his childhood at Matoax in a letter to Gamett:
"The weather still continues bad. The snow is driven
through a dark rheiunatic atmosphere, but there is something
pleasing, although melancholy, to me in the sight. I think
of the days of my boyhood, when I used to trudge through
such weather to visit my traps. I can see the very spot,^
covered with green briers, where I used to set them, and felt
my heart beat as I approached with anxiety for the fate of
my adventure. Those were happy days, and, if the murder-
ous axe had not despoiled the finest groves I ever saw, I would
purchase the place, and lay my bones there. "* (a)
Indeed there was no time in Randolph's life when he
could not say truthfully with the Douglas that he would
rather hear the lark sing than the mouse squeak. So long
s Washington, May 6, 1826.
* Id,, Feb, 10, 1823.
686 John Randolph of Roanoke
as he retained a moderate meastire of health, he fotind a
large part of his enjoyment in the open sky, the fair face
of the earth, and the simple phenomena of its forests,
fields, and waters. He owned several copies of Wilson's
Ornithology, and the feathered life about Roanoke must
have sent him frequently to its pages for identification or
comparison. Throughout all his more vigorous years his
attitude towards bird and mammal at Roanoke reminds
us not a little of Gilbert White and his Natural History
of Selbome. Now we find him measuring and weighing
an owl, 4 ft. and 2 inches from tip to tip, and i pound and
6 oz. in weight ; or weighing a turtle, which had crawled
up the Ferry Branch from the Staunton River. It
weighed 28 potmds. ' The circtunstance that Henry Dies
had killed a grotmd-hog at the Lower Quarter of Roanoke
he thought quite material enough to be entered in the
Diary ; and he had as little compimction as Gilbert White
would have had about noting in one of his other journals
that on July 14, 181 8, a raccoon had been killed at Roa-
noke. Indeed, he knew the relation between rats and the
com that he grew on the Staimton River lowgrounds too
well to refrain from entering in the same jounral four days
later even the fact that he had killed 100 rats. ^ A pang
went through him when he heard that a hawk had finally
destroyed the two wood-ducks, whose movements he had
long observed ; and well might this have been the case ; for
civilization has worked few small tragedies of more
moment than the practical extinction of this beautiful
bird in parts of the United States where it was once abun-
dant and something more than a mere migrant. If he
flushed a wild turkey or a pheasant, in one of his horseback
rambles at Roanoke, he was likely to mention the fact in
the Diary, whether he had had his gun along with him or
not. In other words, so long as he was not too old or
«J.R.*s Diary.
• Journal, Libr. Cong.
Randolph as a Man 687
diseased for the "vernal joys," of which he deplored the
loss so pathetically in the words of Michael Bruce, every
rural sight or sound was to him a source of pure and deep-
seated joy. (a)
Both at Bizarre and Roanoke, Randolph was constantly,
during the proper seasons, whenever he could escape from
the trammels of Congress, engaged in the pastime of
shooting; usually, if not always, with one of his nephews
or other relations or friends, and at one time he was a f ox-
htmter too. * In the Diary, there are frequent references
to the wild turkey — ^that coureur du bois, fleet of foot and
fleet of wing, which in a state of barnyard degeneracy is a
good illustration of what a nation comes to which forgets
that there is such a thing as war; the pheasant, now but a
rare denizen of the Charlotte Cotmty woods; the whistling
plover, a fine game bird which has passed away, or all but
passed away, in that coimty with the passenger pigeon;
the reed bird, which drops that name and its other aliases
— "rice bird," and * * bob-o-link " — and resumes in the
valley of the Staunton its French name "ortolan**; the
sora, or soree, {vulgarly "soaruss**), which vanishes with
the first frost, like a ghost with the first streak of morning
light ; the wood-cock which appears to be a so much easier
mark for the gunner than it really is; the jack-snipe, hard
to hit in his first flurry, but, afterwards, by no means so;
the bull bat, which the merest tyro can bring down without
difficulty when he is flying along in a direct course, pro-
vided that he is low enough, but which hopelessly bewil-
ders any but a practiced eye when he is circling tortuously
about the eaves of a weevil-infested bam; and, above all,
that nonpareil of small game birds, the quail or partridge,
as he is called in Virginia, which needs only a little pro-
tection from the hawk and the trespasser to be as abun-
dant in the valley of the Staunton as it ever was. It is a
curious fact that there is no mention in the journals or
» Reg. of Debates, 1827-8, v. 4, Part I., 1380.
688 John Randolph of Roanoke
letters of Randolph of the common dove, which is probably
as abtmdant in Charlotte County to-day as it ever was
and has always been considered there a game bird, or of
the passenger pigeon, which is now extinct, but which in
Randolph's time darkened the very sky with its countless
niunbers; or, with one exception, of the wild goose, which,
like the mallard and the dusky duck, still winters in the
valley of the Staimton. There are references in the Diary
to the squirrel, which warrant the idea, that, in Randolph's
eye, this animal was worth a load of powder and shot.
For instance, on one occasion, he mentions the fact that
he has shot two squirrels "flying"; and, under date of
Aug. 13, 1 8 1 1 , there is this entry too : * * Boys killed black-
birds. " But blackbirds and meadow-larks, of which, by
the way, no mention is made either by Randolph in his
journals, were the objects upon which a Southside Vir-
ginia boy usually began when he wished to learn how to
shoot on the wing; not imlike the barber apprentices in
Ireland in the iSth century, who are said to have learned
how to shave by first shaving beggars.
In Randolph's time there was, of course, no such thing
as a breech-loading gun, but only muzzle-loaders, and once
his hand was dreadfully lacerated by an explosion caused
by pouring a charge of powder from his powder-flask down
the barrel of his gun when a piece of ignited wadding was
still sticking in it. (a) He evidently had a sense of strong
attachment to his fowling-pieces which were imported
from England, and the weights of several of them are
entered in the Diary.
In October, 181 1, he had not yet become a sufficient
Sabbatarian to scruple about shooting ortolans and part-
ridges on Sunday with John Morton and Henry Tucker,
the brother of George Tucker the historian. * "Today
we broke the Sabbath, according to the estimation of
Puritans," he said.
> Roanoke, Oct., 20, 181 1, Letters to a Y.R.,iii,
Randolph as a Man 689
Randolph was a good shot, though, apparently, by no
means a crack shot. In one of his letters to Nicholson,
he mentions the fact that he had shot 8 partridges and a
hare, a day or so before, at 12 shots. But this was at
Bizarre. * Later, on one occasion at Roanoke, he killed
2 woodcock, 4 partridges, and 2 plover at 8 shots. * Other
feats, approximating this measure of skill, are mentioned
in the Diary, but neither at Bizarre nor at Roanoke do his
bags appear to have been very remarkable. We do find this
entry in one of his journals: ** Killed 30 pieces; Dr. 22. "
But it is not altogether clear that the shooting on this day
was limited to Dr. Dudley and himself. One bag of 45
partridges, and another amazing bag of 65 partridges,
almost as famous as the great flood of 1877 in the Staim-
ton, has been known by the author to have been made in
his boyhood in a single day by a single gunner on a Staun-
ton River plantation some 15 or 16 miles west of Roanoke.
But this was when poaching was not so common on such
a plantation as it is to-day ; and, moreover, when the law
permitted shooting before the vegetation of the fields had
been entirely killed down by frost or the birds had ac-
quired their full strength of wing.
In the mind of Randolph, his slaves, some 373 in
number when he died, were intimately associated with
his horses and dogs. Like the wife in The Locksley Hall
of Tennyson, one of them was to him a little better than
his horse, a little dearer than his dog; but then he loved
his horses and dogs so intensely that this is saying much.
The birth of the last black infant at the Ferry Quarter is
entered in the Diary in very much the same matter of
fact way as the birth of the last foal dropped by one of his
English mares. * ' Sally has a child ; black mare (Quashee's)
died on the 12th," is one entry in it. '*What of clover-
seed? of Spot, and Roanoke? — one or both of which I shall
> Bizarre, Oct. 24, 1806, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Coog.
«J. R/s Diary.
VOL. n — 44
690 John Randolph of Roanoke
want very soon ? Of the dogs ? and though last, not least,
of old Essex (a) and Co., and little Molly?" (i), is a para-
graph in one of Randolph's letters to Dr. Dudley. ' On
another occasion, pining for news from Roanoke, after his
long sojourn in Richmond, in the winter of 1 813-14,
Randolph wrote to Theodore: "I wish when you write
to me, you would call to mind such objects as you suppose
would interest me; even the dogs and little Molly, I would
rather hear of than nothing. "* ** You have not said one
word of Dido or her puppies, or my poor old Carlo, or
little Molly, or Essex, or Jupiter, or Nancy. Ten suis
fachi.*'^ But, until his mind finally succtunbed, Ran-
dolph was a very kind, not to say afiFectionate, master.
''Mr. Randolph was a humane master, and a kind neigh-
bor," Sawyer tells us. **He saw personally,** Sawyer con-
tinues, *'into the wants and the complaints of his numerous
slaves; administered to them, as the occasion required, and
studied their comfort in every particular. He used daily to
ride over his fields, when they were at work, and, when he
approached, they would make their obeisance with a touch of
the hat, which he would return with a nod or bow. "^
It is said by Bouldin that Randolph's servants were
the best and politest in the coimty, and, if they really
deserved this commendation, it was doubtless because of
the kind and considerate treatment that they had received
at the hands of their master. ^ (c) The Rev. James
Waddell Alexander goes so far as to declare that Randolph
was adored by his negroes.^ This is strong language,
but it is corroborated by a paragraph in Josiah Quincy's
Figures of the Past.
» Babel, Jan. 14, 1817, letters to a Y. R., 182.
• Richm., May 16, 1814, Id., 158.
J York Buildings, Dec. 24, 18 14, Letters to a Y. -R., 168.
* Sawyer, 47.
* Bouldin, 73.
• Forty Yrs.* Letters f v. i, 270.
Randolph as a Man 691
"A gentleman, whom I met in Washington, ** he says, "had
returned with Randolph to his plantation after a session of
Congress, and testified to me of the affection with which he
was regarded by his slaves. Men and women reached toward
him, seized him by the hand with perfect familiarity, and
burst into tears of deUght at his presence among them. His
conduct to these humble dependents was like that of a most
affectionate father among his children. "*
Authentic instances are not wanting in which Randolph
occasionally chastised one of his servants with his own
hand; but, if any such incident can be referred to any
period when his mental condition was normal, the fact
can be reasonably reconciled with the parental relation
that the words of Quincy depict. Certainly, all the facts
disclosed by Randolph's journals and letters tend to bear
out the statements of Sawyer and Quincy.
It was a remark of Wm. Cabell Rives that a Virginia
plantation was a sort of mimic Commonwealth, ^ and we
derive a renewed sense of the felicity of this description
when the relations of Randolph to Roanoke and its black
population and overseers are brought to our knowledge.
Randolph's negroes were well fed and when, because of
some natural catastrophe, there was any reason for him
to doubt his ability to supply them with abimdant food,
his distress was poignant. Productive as Roanoke was,
and many hands as well as mouths as it contained, Ran-
dolph had to buy, after his return from Russia, nearly
$2,000 worth of provisions for the maintenance of his
slaves.^ His slaves were also well clothed, doubtless
principally with garments made out of cloth spun or woven
on his own plantations ; although he mentions in his letters
purchases of cloth for his slaves made by him. We know
also that his slaves were well provided with bed-clothing. *
» P. 228. * Life of Jos, Madison, v. i , 3.
3 Garland, v. 2, 347.
< Bouldin, 71.
692 John Randolph of Roanoke
In his Reminiscences of John Randolph, the Rev. R. L.
Dabney recalls a scene witnessed at Roanoke by Wm.
Coles Dickinson, a horse breeder, on one occasion, when
he had been taken to Roanoke by his business :
** Dickinson said that he spent the night by Mr. Randolph's
invitation. After supper, John came in and said to his master :
'The people are ready, Sir.' Randolph said to his guest:
* My servants are expecting of me this evening the performance
of a duty, which is a very important and interesting one to
them. I make it a matter of conscience not to disappoint
them. It is the distribution of the annual supply of blankets
for the plantation. I must, therefore, beg you to excuse me
for an hour, and to amuse yourself with the books and news-
papers. Or, if you prefer to accompany me, I shall be glad
to have you witness the proceeding. ' Dickinson said that he
was eager to see all he could of this strange and famous man,
and so he eagerly chose the latter proposal. They went to
the preaching-house, where a large nimiber of negroes were
present, and John and others brought in large rolls of stout
English blankets (Mr. Randolph had so strong a sense of the
injustice of the protective tariffs that he refused on principle
to buy anything of Yankee manufacture which shared this
iniquitous plunder. His great tobacco crops were shipped
to London, and sold there on his own account, and he bought
there everything needed for his plantations.) He then began
to call the roll of the adult servants. Each one, as he came
forward, was required to exhibit the blankets which he already
possessed. Some prudent ones exhibited four and received
four new ones in addition; some presented two, and received
two new ones; some one and received one. Some careless
fellows had none to show, and were sent away without any,
receiving a pretty keen rebuke instead. When it was over,
Mr. Dickinson remarked to him that the principle of distribu-
tion seemed a very strange one, since those who needed new
blankets the least got the most, and those who needed them
most got none. Randolph answered: *No, sir,* the Bible rule
is mine, "He that hath, to him shall be given that he may
have more abtmdance, and from him that hath not shall be
Randolph as a Man 693
taken away that which he seemeth to have." ' He then
explained that his purpose was to give his servants an impres-
sive object lesson upon the virtue of thrift. That those care-
less fellows, who could present no blanket, had traded off for
whiskey what he had given them, or had lazily allowed them
to be burned or lost, and their disappointment would teach
them to be wiser in future. "'
A letter from Randolph to Dr. Brockenbrough, dated
Nov. 15, 1 831, not only evidences the fact that the negro
children at Roanoke were warmly clad in wool during the
winter, but also gives us an insight into the contents of a
negro cabin of the best class there.
'* I have been in a perpetual broil, " he said, ** with overseers
and niggers. My head man I detected stealing the wool that
was to have clad his own and the other children; the receiver
the very rascal (one of Mr. Mercer's house-keepers) who
flogged poor Juba, who had no wool, except upon his head.
I have punished the scoundrel exemplarily, and shall send him
to Georgia or Louisiana, at Christmas. He has a wife and
three fine children. Here is a description of his establishment :
a log house of the finest class, with two good rooms below, and
lofts above; a barrel half full of meal (but two days to a fresh
supply) ; steel shovel and tongs better than I have seen in any
other house, my own excepted; a good bed, filled with hay;
another, not so good, for his children; eight blankets; a large
iron pot, and Dutch-oven; frying-pan; a large fat hog, finer
than any in my pen; a stock of large ptmipkins, cabbages, &c.,
secured for the winter. His house had a porch, or shed, to it,
like my own."*
The attention of the reader has already been called to
the fact that the efforts of John Randolph to impart
religious instruction to his slaves went hand in hand, on
soberer occasions than the one mentioned by the Rev.
Mr. Clopton, with his efforts to impart it to such boys as
» Union Seminary Mag., (1894-95), v. 6, 14-21.
« Garland, v. 2, 347.
694 John Randolph of Roanoke
happened to be under his roof. There could be no better
proof of the considerate manner in which he looked after
the material welfare of his negroes than the advanced
ages of some of them who are named in the list of his
emancipated slaves registered at Charlotte Court House.
For instance the age of old Quash, whom we have more
than once mentioned in these pages, is given in this reg-
ister as 90 years, and that of his wife Nancy, called
Mulatto Nancy, as 80. Among the persons registered
was also Granny Hannah, aged 100 years.
Randolph's slaves were divided into two classes — ^his
'*out" servants, whose labor carried on his plantation
operations, and his house servants, who performed the
various menial services that his household establishment
required. He was so frequently absent from Roanoke
that his plantation affairs were largely left to the manage-
ment of his overseers; consequently, it is not often that
we obtain a glimpse of any of his field laborers in his
journals and letters. On one occasion, however, they are
brought rather dramatically to our notice by an order
which he once gave to them, in the later years of his life,
to save fodder on the Sabbath. As a result of this viola-
tion of the sanctity of the Sabbath, John Marshall, of
Charlotte Court House, who was at Roanoke when the
order was given, and heard it uttered, was summoned
before the Grand Jury at Charlotte Court House to tes-
tify to the offence. He positively refused to make any
answer to the Grand Jury, when questioned upon the
subject, on the ground that to do so would be a breach
of social duty. This excuse the Grand Jury declined to
accept as valid, but, Marshall still refusing to answer, it
was left no choice but to submit it to the Court, Judge
Wm. Leigh, Randolph's intimate friend, who at once
decided that a guest could not lawfully claim such a privi-
lege. Hardly, however, had Marshall been remanded to
the Grand Jury room when Randolph was driven up to
Randolph as a Man 695
the court house in his English coach, drawn by four
blooded horses. Leaving it, he proceeded directly into
the court room, and took his seat immediately in front of
Judge Leigh; announcing, audibly, in one of his strange
half -whispers, that he understood that he was to be pre-
sented, and that he had come to make his defence. Hap-
pily for him, it did not become necessary for him to do so,
because, when sent back to the Grand Jury room, Marshall
had shrewdly raised the point that, imder the revised Code
of Virginia then in force, the act of each slave was a sepa-
rate offence, and that the penalty prescribed for it, $1.67,
was below the jurisdiction of the Court. The incident
rests upon the testimony of Wood Bouldin, of Charlotte
County, who afterwards became a distinguished member
of the Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia, and by him
we are also told that, if his memory was not at fault, E.
W. Henry, the last surviving son of Patrick Henry, was
the foreman of the Grand Jury. '
Repeatedly, however, certain of the house servants of
Randolph are mentioned by him in one connection or
another ; and often in terms of the sincerest affection and
sympathy. '* Nancy," he wrote on one occasion, *'is
very ill. Old Essex, too, is laid up with a swelled jaw from
a carious tooth. This, I believe, is the sum of our domes-
tic news, except that old Dido is plus caduque que son
maUre. **' To John Marshall, of Charlotte Court House,
we are indebted for a vignette of Essex before he incurred
the displeasure of his master in 1831.
** There was an old negro man, named Essex, who, according
to his own and Mr. Randolph's account, was upwards of 80
years old. He was the most genteel servant I ever saw, and
Mr. Randolph used to call him familiarly 'Daddy* Essex,
and, although the relation of master and servant was kept up
between them, it was done with the utmost cordiality and
' Bouldin, 31.
' Roanoke, June 10, 1821, Letters toa Y, R., 221.
696 John Randolph of Roanoke
kindness in the manner of each which I had ever witnessed
between master and slave. It was the custom of Essex, when
leaving his master's service at night, to give him the usual
salutation and wish him good repose; and this civility was
returned by the master."*
To the two of his slaves, who were his body servants —
Juba, or Jupiter, and John — Randolph was peculiarly
attached, and, so closely associated were they with all the
movements of their master that they became almost as
well known as he was. In one of his letters to Dr. Dudley,
Randolph asks him to remember him to old Essex, and
Jupiter, and Nancy, and little Molly, and Hetty, and all
the people. **I hope Jupiter does well," he adds.'
''Remember me to Juba," is the postscript a year or so
later to one of his letters to Dr. Dudley. * This was when
Jupiter had been worn down by nursing Richard Stanford
at Washington, and had gone back to Roanoke. **You
say nothing of Juba, " is a reminder that he gives to Dr.
Dudley several weeks later. ^. Jupiter was twice pros-
trated by illness, while in the service of his master; once
immediately after Stanford's death, and, subsequently,
when Randolph was at St. Petersbtwg. Nothing could
have been tenderer than the feelings excited in Randolph
by each event. In one of his letters, he mentions the fact
that Juba had murmured in one of his intervals of restless
sleep after Stanford's death, **I wish master and I was at
home." (a) Jupiter's second illness at St. Petersburg
affected Randolph even more deeply. Describing it in a
letter to Dr. Brockenbrough, he said:
"In consequence of Juba's situation, I walked down one
morning to the English boarding-house, where Clay had
' Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clk's Oflfice, Cir. Ct., Petersbuig,
Va.
• York Buildings, Dec. 27, 1814, Letters toaY. R., 170.
i Richm., Aug. 10, 1816, Id., 178.
4 Roanoke, Sept. 3, 1816, Id., 179.
Randolph as a Man 697
lodged, kept by a Mrs. Wilson, of whom I had heard a very
high character as a nurse, and especially of servants. I pre-
vailed upon her to take charge of the poor boy, which she
readily agreed to do. I put Juba, on whom I had practiced
with more than Russian energy, into my carriage, got into it,
brought him into the bedroom taken for myself, had a blazing
fire kindled so as to keep the thermometer at 65° morning, 70°
afternoon; ventilated well the apartment; poured in the
quinine, opitmi, and port wine, and snake-root tea for drink
with a heavy hand (he had been previously purged with mer-
curials) ; and to that energy tmder God I owe the life of my
dear, faithful Juba.'''
There is also a pleasant reference to Juba in the remi-
niscences of Jacob Harvey.
**Why, Sir," he reports Randolph as being in the habit of
saying of some leading politician, for whom he had no partic-
ular partiality, **he has not half the talents of my man Juba.
Give Juba some more learning — book knowledge I mean, Sir;
not head-work, he has that — ^and 111 match him against half
the cabinet. Sir, for real, substantial talents.**^
There are two references to Juba in Randolph's letters
to John Randolph Clay. In one letter, he says: **Juba
humbly but affectionately returns your greeting. Homer
says that, in reducing man to the state of a slave, you
take half his worth away. When you enfranchise a negro,
you take away the remaining half. "^ In another letter,
written during the same month, Randolph said: **Poor
Juba sends his htunble howdye*. "^ A Virginian, at any
rate, will smile when he reads a statement in one of Ran-
dolph's letters from Richmond that Juba had cut his leg
against the **rock " ; that is the marble slabs, on the stair-
case in Dr. Brockenbrough's bank. *
' Garland, v. 2, 338. • The New Mirror , v. i, 353.
i Washington, Feb. 12, 1829, Libr. Cong
< Washington, Feb. 3, 1829, Libr. Cong.
»Bank of Va., Dec. 22, 1813, 147.
698 John Randolph of Roanoke
If anything, John was still closer to Randolph than
Juba. He was one of Randolph's body servants as early
as 1803, and served him in that capacity tin til his last
respiration.
II
His treatment of servants and especially his own slaves, "
declares a friend of Randolph speaking of him as he knew him
in 1805, ** was that of the kindest master, and he always called
his personal attendant * Johnny * — a circumstance to my mind
strongly indicative of habitual good will towards him. " *
Twenty-seven years after these words were written,
Randolph wrote a letter to his friend, Thomas A. Morton,
from London, in which, after asking Morton to remember
him to the old servants, particularly Syphax, Louisa,
Sam, and Phil, he paid this tribute to John in a postcsript:
'* John, my servant, is quite well. He has not been other-
wise since we left the U. S., and is a perfect treasure to
me. He desires his remembrance to Syphax, &c., &c. "'
In an earlier letter to Littleton Waller Tazewell, who had
just lost one of his faithful servants, Randolph spoke of
John in these terms :
**Your most welcome letter is just now put into my hands
by my ' John, ' who, if he lives as long, will be just such another,
I trust, as the humble friend that you have lost. I know not
at this time a better man, one of more conscientious, rational
piety, or more trustworthy; although he neither sings hymns
nor goes to night meetings, I have not a truer friend; no, not
even yourself; but where am I wandering to?"^
Some few years afterwards, he wrote to John Randolph
Clay: *' People may say what they please, but I have
found no better friends than among my own servants.
» Bouldin, 173.
• Id., 228.
i Washington, Feb. 20, 1826, L. W. Tazewell, Jr., MSS.
4 Feb. 12, 1829, Clay MSS., Libr. Cong.
»»
Randolph as a Man 699
In the following letter from Randolph to his niece, he not
only had something to say about the weaker side of John's
character, but also some observations to make on his
other servants and the management of servants generally :
"What you say about your Mammy does not reflect credit
upon her character only, but on those who were her masters
and mistresses. It does honor at once to your heart and
understanding. I have never known very bad servants
unless to bad masters and mistresses, who either were perpet-
ually scolding and correcting, or fell into the other extreme of
leaving them to themselves, and spoiling them by false indul-
gences. I was at home from March 22nd to the middle of
November last year, and, in all that time, I never rebuked but
one of my domestics (a woman), and that was once and once
only, and not harshly. Finding fault never yet did good.
Neither have I for years corrected them in any other way,
and then only boys. I am satisfied that, if I had habitually
found fault, they would have got used to it in a fortnight;
now they watch my countenance like my faithful Newfound-
land dog. I wish you could have seen Johnny, when Charles
L. Bonaparte asked me at dinner the other day if the servant
behind my chair was my famous man, John: so well known
in Europe for his fidelity and attachment to me. This last
he said, when I asked how famous? Now I took John a little
boy, and shewed him that my ptupose was never to punish
him unless he compelled me to do so. He fell where the best
have fallen, under the temptations and seductions of a town
life. He became a sot when the fact was no longer to be
concealed. I asked whether I had ever reproached him with
a suspicion of the kind. He said that I never had. I replied:
* I have had strong suspicions of it for three years. Go and
report yourself to the overseer. ' He did so; worked manfully
but (as was to be expected from one whose coat was always
cut off the same piece of cloth as mine) they quarrelled. The
overseer was an uncommonly just, htmiane, but resolute man.
John went away (as he said, and as I now firmly believe)
to get to me, but, as it was a short session of Congress, and
we had in fact adjourned about the period of his elopement.
700 John Randolph of Roanoke
I then doubted it. He was taken up at Occoquan, and com-
mitted to Diunfries Jail. There, I let him Ue about three
months, directing the jailer to keep him on jail allowance,
and to speak to no one but himself. He got many letters
written, praying to come home. I sent a man to pay his
charges and bring him home. They came together in the
stage as far as Richmond, when my agent went to his own
house in Powhatan, and John gladly made the best of his way
home. I remitted him to his toil in the fields. He was the
best hand (so Curd, the overseer, said) that I had. I left him
there three years, and then put him upon good behaviour
about my person. He is a man of strict truth, he no longer
drinks or games ; I need not say, after the first attribute (truth),
that he is scrupulously honest. His attention and attachment
to me resemble more those of a mother to a child, or rather a
lover to his mistress, than a servant's to a master. I have
nearly reformed his father from drinking, (a) I lock up
nothing from my servants at home but ardent spirits, not
wine or porter or sugar or coffee, etc. Hetty keeps my smoke-
house and other keys. I don't believe that she, or her daugh-
ter Nancy, now dead, wronged me of a pin. They, as well as
John, are truly religious. But , Uke his master, *has
none to speak of. ' The same was the character of his sister.
No cant, no groaning, and sighing, and hymn-singing. I am
at the end of my paper. Essex, Queen and Juba are likewise
trustworthy. They never take, i, e, steal an)rthing. "'
In the preceding pages of this book we have more than
once referred to Mammy Aggy, who had been the maid
of Randolph's mother, but had afterwards become
attached to the family of Judge Coalter. Nothing could
be more characteristic of the Slave Era than the place
which this woman occupied in Randolph's affections.
Few names recur oftener than hers in his letters to his
niece. * ' My love to mammy. God bless you, my dear, "
were the concluding words of one of them." When his
« Jan. 19, 1828, Bryan MSS.
"Jan. 31, 1824, Bryan MSS.
Randolph as a Man 701
niece, who had recently received an injury to her foot,
writes to him that she cannot get the information which
she would like to get from Mammy about his Aunt Mur-
ray, he simply cannot understand it, and goes off into a
long genealogical excursion, for the ptupose of refreshing
Mammy's waning memory.
** Mammy," he declared, "must have lost her momery, if
she has forgotten Aunt Murray, the mother of Cousin Billy
Murray and of Mrs. David and of Mrs. Tom Gordon. "
*****
''Talk to her of Athol (pronounced Aw-thol), of Grove
Brook, where yotw dear mother had spent many a hospitable
day; of that family, Nancy, now Mrs. Dr. Robinson, Rebecca,
Martha, Polly Skipwith; of Polly Murray (Mrs Edm Harri-
son), whose mother, James Murray's widow, married Jerman
Baker, of Archer's Hill, by whom she had the late treasurer
and Jack Baker; of Mrs. John Murray, one of whose daughters
married The. Rufl&n; of Mrs. Davis, mother of Peggy Goode,
who married Mr. Klnox; of Mrs. Tom Gordon, mother of
Nancy Gordon, who married Col. Henry E. Coleman, of
Halifax. She died in 1824, while I was in England. Pray
give the foot time — only healer when the (foot) hath bled."*
Several other letters from Randolph to his niece make
it apparent that he was a sort of nexus between Mammy
Aggy and the older Randolph negroes at Roanoke.
"I write only," he wrote on one occasion to his niece, "to
prove to you the value that I set upon your correspondence,
and to gratify Mammy's laudable curiosity respecting her
kinsfolk in this quarter of the country. Essex, whom she
more particularly names, has been quite well until yesterday.
His indisposition is slight, the consequence of not adapting his
dress to the late sudden change in the weather. Hetty, Nancy,
Johnny, and Juba are well and all of my out people — uncom-
monly so."*
* Washington, Feb. 25, 1829, Bryan MSB.
' Roanoke, Sept. 26, 1823, Dr. R. B. Carmichad MSS.
702 John Randolph of Roanoke
An institution, under which the kindest master might,
by the loss of his reason, be converted into a harsh and
tyrannical one, without any escape for the slave from his
lot, was an institution not easily defended, even at its
best; but, after closely going over the relations of Ran-
dolph to his slaves, before the milk of htunan kindness in
his breast had been curdled by insane impulses and delu-
sions, we can readily understand how his neighbor and
friend, John Marshall, could have testified in the Ran-
dolph will litigation : ' ' His slaves were very much attached
to him ; they almost worshipped him. " '
If Randolph was unkind to anybody on his plantations,
it was not to his slaves, but to his overseers. His relations
with some of them were far from being either trustful or
friendly. If there was good reason for this, it was prob-
ably because his frequent absence from home gave unusual
point in his case to the saying that the eye of the master
is worth both hands of the servant. The salary usually
paid by him to one of his overseers appears to have been
$400.00 or $500.00, per annum'; but, of course, many
perquisites went along with this salary, which made it a
much larger one in fact than in terms of money. More
than once in his life Randolph formed the idea that it was
considerably increased by dishonest practices.
**In answer to your most kind and flattering questions,"
he once wrote to Josiah Quincy, ** I must tell you that it is so
because a Southern proprietor is a poor devil and his overseer
a prince. I had to discard one the other day for malversation
and peculation in office — a small affair compared with what
we wot of in the * great vulgar and the small * in the city of 0,
[Washington] and its dependencies. I wish you could have
heard two worthy neighbors cautioning me against a contest
at law with an overseer as a 'tremendous business,' where,
» Coalter's Exor. vs. Randolph's Exor., Clk's Oflfice, Cir. Ct., PetersbuiKt
Va.
» J. R/s Diary.
Randolph as a Man 703
whatever may be the merits of the case, the employer is sure
to be cast. ' I knew, too, that they were right. "*
In one place in the Diary, Randolph speaks of * * Palmer's
villainy"; and it really does look as if this overseer was
far from being everything that he should have been. In
one of his letters, Randolph says in that academic diction
which sat upon him as naturally as he sat upon a saddle,
that another overseer of his is in mediiaiiane fugce to
Tennessee.
The rough manner in which he handled one of his
overseers, named Pentecost, who had incurred his dis-
pleasure, has been told by Henry Carrington in a manner
which gives us a sharpened insight into the seamy side of
plantation life :
**In the above mentioned year, Mr. Randolph failed in his
supply of tobacco plants at his lower quarter, where a man
by the name of P. [Pentecost] was overseer. About the first
of July, he ascertained that he could get plants from Colonel
C, in Halifax. He wrote to P. to take a boat belonging to
the estate, cross the river to Colonel C.'s, get the plants, and
plant his crop.
"Some two days afterwards, he learned that the overseer
had not obeyed the order. He was aroused. He wrote to
me to meet him on the estate at nine o'clock next day. On
going to the place, according to his appointment, I found him
on the ground, and also Colonel C, Captain W., Captain J. S.,
and Mr. A. G. He proposed to us to ride with him over the
estate and view the condition of the crops. We found every-
thing in bad order; the tobacco ground particularly out of
order for planting.
"After consuming some hours in the survey, he conducted
us to the granary. There were gathered together the planta-
tion implements of every description, and, in the midst, were
standing two negro girls, each with a mulatto child in her
arms. The assemblage was remarkable, and I anxiously
« Roanoke, Oct. i8, 1813, Life of Quincy, 338.
704 John Randolph of Roanoke
expected a scene. He enquired of the girls where was P.
They said that, after collecting the various articles then in
our view, he disappeared.
'* Mr. Randolph said he had ordered him also to be present;
but he disobeyed because he could not stand the ordeal to
which he was to be subjected. Then, turning to Mr. G., a
plain but respectable citizen, who had some years before,
acted as steward for Mr. Randolph, he said: *I have invited
you herewith today, Mr. G., to make to you publicly, in the
presence of these gentlemen, all the reparation in my power
for the great injury I have done you. '
"Mr. G. seemed greatly startled. He assured Mr. Ran-
dolph that there was no occasion for explanation; that he had
alwa3rs treated him very well.
** 'Sir,' replied Mr. Randolph, 'you are greatly mistakea
For more than a year past, I have endeavored to show by my
bearing towards you, my disgust with you and my contempt
for your character. But I am undeceived. This fellow, P.,
had induced me to believe that you were the father of the
children now before us. But, I now know that he, P., has
carried on the intercourse which he charges upon you, and
that these are his children. '
'* Never was man more astonished than was Mr. G. He
reiterated, — * Never, Mr. Randolph, was there a greater lie. '
* * * Mr. Randolph all the time assuring him that he
knew that he had wronged him, and, therefore, he was anxious
to make the most ample apology and reparation.
** He then turned to the gentlemen present, and said : * Look
at these girls; they are my crop hands. See how their heads
are combed; how oily their hair. Do they look like they had
stood blasts of Winter or Summer's sun? No, Sirs; they have
been in his harem. '
"The scene was highly dramatic; the acting, if it could be
so regarded, unsurpassed.
"After this scene at the granary, Mr. Randolph proposed
to us to go to the house, and get some fresh water. Mrs. P.
brought us the water. Mr. Randolph, in our presence, said
to her, he was aware of the infidelity of her husband, and felt
for her the deepest compassion.
Randolph as a Man 705
" Mr. P. had, in the meantime, taken himself to some house
in the neighborhood, where, from great perturbation of spirit,
he fell ill. Mr. Randolph sent for a lawyer, and instituted
several suits against him. But, hearing that he was seriotisly
ill, his feelings relented. He told me it did not become him,
a professing Christian, to persecute the man to death. *I
must go and see him, ' said he; and he did so, with the hope
of curing and relieving him.
'* He told P. that he must not let this difficulty depress him;
that the suits he had ordered against him must be prosecuted
to judgment, as an example to his successors, but that no
execution should be issued.
** Mr. Randolph asked him what he intended to do. Mr.
P. told him he wished to move west. Mr. Randolph asked
him if he had money for the purpose. Mr. P. replied, he had
not; but that he proposed selling the negro boy who waited
on him. Mr. Randolph asked the price. Five hundred
dollars, was the reply. Thereupon, Mr. Randolph agreed to
purchase the boy, and paid the price. "^
According to the details of this transaction, given by
one of Randolph's journals, when he heard that Pentecost
was dying he went to his house, and found him in a state
of hysteria, and, subsequently, after first writing a long
bill in chancery, so as to provide for every contingency,
like Sydney Smith, when he took along with him to the
bedside of his ill parishioner both the Collects for the Sick
and a bottle of castor oil, visited him again, and bought
from him his boy Moses, with a view to accelerating his
hegira from Roanoke. "
But all of Randolph's overseers were by no means
Palmers or Pentecosts. It was a saying of Charles Bruce,
the Charlotte County planter, to whom we have more
than once referred, that it was easier to secure a htmdred
good hands than one good overseer; and, taken as a whole,
' Bouldin, 126.
« Libr. Cong.
VOL. 11—4$
7o6 John Randolph of Roanoke
the man, who occupied the position of overseer on a large
Virginia plantation, however illiterate he might be, was
usually endowed to a greater degree than most men with
the three elements that make up that rare thing — execu-
tive ability ; namely, justice, kindness, and firmness.
What Randolph thought of the faithful, capable Ciud,
whom he nursed so tenderly under his own roof, the reader
has already been told. And another one of his overseers,
Cumby by name, was held in equally high esteem by him.
** Cumby can do anything, " he was in the habit of sajring.
One day, he said, he and Cumby were riding over Roanoke
when they came to a frame house, which drew from him
the remark that he wished that he could have it for a
store-house. Two days afterwards, the house walked up
(to use his expression) into his yard; with everything
complete except the chimneys. On another occasion,
according to Randolph, Cumby built a bam, when he was
absent from Roanoke. When he returned, he told him
that it was in the right place but that it was set wrong,
and should have been set on a north and south line. The
next day, when he rode by it, he found that it had been
turned entirely around by Cumby, and he was so pleased
that he gave it the name of the **tum-arotmd bam,"
which it ever afterwards bore. '
On one occasion Randolph was told by Palmer that he
was **too tight with him"; that is, to adopt Randolph's
translation of these words, would not permit him to
encroach beyond the terms of his contract with him ; and
this Randolph set down as a piece of impertinence.
But he knew when to relax as well as to tighten the
reins with his overseers, and we learn from Jacob Harvey
that he expressed a strong feeling of respect for a favorite
overseer who had declined to adopt a new-fangled plan of
planting tobacco, which he had picked up at Washington.
Randolph, or *'Mr. Randall ^ " as this overseer was in the
» Bouldin, 102.
Randolph as a Man 707
habit of calling him, bowed his neck in submission,
although he was told flatly by the man that, notwithstand-
ing the respect that he had for the opinions of '*Mr.
Randall*' on all other subjects but tobacco planting, he
would plant tobacco in his own way or not at all. The
result, Randolph said, was a great crop. '
In concluding what we have had to say about Roanoke,
it may interest the reader to know that this was a list of
topics which Randolph once, when at Washington, asked
Dr. Dudley to cover in his next letter from Roanoke, in
the order in which he mentioned them :
"Your own afiEair — Ca. — CI. — Plantation afiEairs generally
— Essex and Hetty — Nancy, etc., — Pheasants — Partridges —
Summer ducks — Fruit Trees — Sir Archy Colt — and Phillis —
Blood stock generally — ^Tobacco — ."*
« The New Mirror, v. i, 353.
' Washincrton, Feb. 7, 1820, Letters to a Y. R., 212.
CHAPTER X
Conclusion
In conclusion, we cannot refrain from dwelling for a
moment upon the prof oimd change which has taken place
since Randolph's death in the District, so long and so
conspicuously represented by him in Congress. The face
of nature in it has, it is true, imdergone but little alter-
ation. The willow-fringed Staimton still flows by Roa-
noke, through silent solitudes for the most part, to Clarks-
viUe, where it receives the waters of the Dan, hurrying to
their tryst with its own current. The general appearance
of the coimtry between the James and the Roanoke is
still that of a single vast forest, invaded at intervals by
the axe and the plow, and traversed here and there by
common dirt roads, half lost to sight in its leafy recesses.
All species of wild game are not as abimdant in this region
as when Randolph jotted down his bags of partridges and
woodcock, and the number of Dido's last litter in the
Diary ; but even such a shy thing as the wild turkey still
haimts its glades and plant patches, and, in at least one
of its streams, within recent years, the beaver, that curious
artisan of the primaeval wilderness, has been known to
rear its rude structures. In the absence of a diversified
industry, the people of Randolph's former District still
believe, as Randolph believed, that their best resource is
the tobacco plant.
But, in all political and social respects, how radically
transformed has this region become since 1833! The
708
G>nclusion 709
freehold suffrage, but for which Randolph's career would
hardly have been possible, was abolished by the adoption
of the Virginia State Constitution of 1850, and was suc-
ceeded by the universal white suffrage, which he so deeply
distrusted. After the Civil War, under circumstances,
which would have seemed to him the complete fulfillment
ot his worst forebodings of federal tyranny, this suffrage
was so enlarged as to include first black as well as white
men, and then both white and black women. To Ran-
dolph the extension of the suffrage to the negro and the
female sex would have been, it is safe to say, only less
monstrous than its extension to his horse, Gracchus, or to
his dog, Carlo. The landed gentry, which controlled the
county governments in his District, and imparted vivid
life and color to the character of the latter, has passed
away, with its frank, engaging, generous, and spirited
manners ; its love of the horse, the hound, and the gun ; its
numerous servants, its profuse tables, its doors that, like
those of Timon of Athens, "were ne'er acquainted with
their wards." A few weeks ago, the author left the
house in Charlotte County, which was once the home of
one of the wealthiest slave owners of Virginia ; then teeming
with servants and lavishly blest with all the essentials
of abundant and joyous living ; but now a mere vacant,
deserted anachronism; and, as he looked back from a
lower level on its lonely towers and battlements, his
imagination experienced no diflficulty in picturing it as
some huge marine fossil left stranded upon its *high seat
by the recession of some prehistoric sea.
Thousands of steady, moral, God-fearing inhabitants
reside in the four counties which Randolph represented,
and, in many respects, they are better qualified than the
members of the class, of which we have been speaking,
would be to bring about the industrial change, which is
steadily giving a wholly new aspect to parts of the face
of North Carolina, and is bound, sooner or later, to make
710 John Randolph of Roanoke
its influence generally lelt in all Southside Virginia. But
in point of social characteristics and tastes, these individ-
uals are, as a rule, far removed from the inmates of the
country seats in Charlotte, Prince Edward, Buckingham,
and Cimiberland Counties, which were so often visited
by Randolph in the eariy part of the 19th century. Yet
the renown of Randolph, the most famous Virginian ever
bom below the James, will unquestionably continue to be
one of the most cherished possessions, not only of the
people of his former District, but of all Virginia; for,
despite the sharp social distinctions of the past, the people
of Virginia, as geographically limited to-day, are, and
always have been, a highly homogeneous one. We make
the prediction that we do, not because Virginia is disposed
to place Randolph upon a pedestal of such exalted promi-
nence as has been sometimes affirmed by bigoted writers.
When she came to fill the niggard space in Statuary Hall
at the National Capitol, tendered to her rich abundance,
she did not turn to any Virginian, of whom it can be said,
as it can be truthfully said, in a limited sense, of him; that
he was exclusively hers, but to Washington and Lee, of
whom one would but mock her, if he were to say that they
were hers only. In the future, doubtless, with the excep-
tion of the fame of Jefferson, the most illustrious exemplar,
perhaps, of the democratic movement, which has been the
most permanent and irresistible movement in human
history, the fame of no native Virginian is so likely to be
lasting as that of Washington and Marshall, who, lifted
by their serene balance of character and breadth of view
and sjrmpathy above the sectional jealousies and discords
of their age, always kept their eyes steadily fixed upon no
vision less splendid than that of One People and One
Destiny, to which the stride of great events, since the
conclusion of the Civil War has happily brought every
portion of the United States.
But Virginia cannot forget that there was another time
Conclusion 7"
in her history when the wisest and best man, within her
borders, might well have doubted whether his paramoimt
allegiance was to her or to the ill-defined imion created
by the Federal Constitution ; indeed, when an overwhelm-
ing majority of her people, influenced by the inexorable
course of events, decided that question, though most
reluctantly, in favor of her sovereignty, and gave all that
men can honorably give — Peace, Wealth, and Life — ^to
make their decision good. Remembering these things,
Virginia will always hold John Randolph of Roanoke in
grateful remembrance ; retaining ineflfaceably in her mem-
ory in the future, as in the past, the recollection of his
unique presence; his tmf altering intrepidity; his bitter
sorrows and misfortunes ; his brilliant rhetorical, literary,
and social gifts; his searching flashes of prescience and
reasoning ; his high public motives ; his scorn for the muck-
worms and scavengers of prostituted poUtics, and, above
all, his imceasing constancy in the maintenance of what
his native State conceived that her honor and interests
required. Nor, now that the veil has been completely
withdrawn from his private life, will Virginia fail to bear
in mind, too, his heart far more sensitive, after all, despite
a morbidly high-strung nature and tragic intervals of
mental aberration, to the tenderest impulses of human
love and pity than to those of human passion, arrogance,
and hatred.
And more and more, in the future, it can be confidently
predicted, will it be realized by every part of the United
States that, with respect to Randolph also, it may be said
that it is upon the poet, after all, that the true gift of
divination has been bestowed :
"Bard, Sage and Tribune! in himself
All moods of mind contrasting; —
The tenderest wail of himian woe
The scorn like lightning blasting;
712 John Randolph of Roanoke
The pathos which from rival eyes
Unwilling tears cotild summon;
The stinging taunt, the fiery burst
Of hatred scarcely htiman; —
Mirth sparkling like a diamond shower
From lips of life-long sadness;
Clear picturings of majestic thought
Upon a ground of madness;
And, over all, romance and song
A classic beauty throwing.
And laurelled Clio at his side
Her storied pages showing."
(Whittier.)
APPENDIX
"At Washington, I learned the result of the dispatches
brought by the John Adams (a name of evil omen) , and there
rumors were afloat, which have since gathered strength, of
a disposition in Massachusetts, and, indeed, throughout New
England, to follow the example of Nantucket, and declare for
a neutrality in the present contest with Great Britain. I
will not believe it. What! Boston, the cradle of American
Independence, to whose aid Virginia, stept forth unsolicited,
when the whole vengeance of the British ministry was wreaked
on that devoted town. Boston! now to desert us, in our
utmost need; to give up her old ally to ravage, at the price of
her own impunity from the common enemy? — I cannot, will
not, believe it. The men, if any such there be among you,
who venture to insinuate such an intent by the darkest in-
nuendo, do they claim to be the disciples of Washington?
They are of the school of Arnold. I am not insensible to the
vexations and oppression, with which you have been harassed,
with little intermission, since the memorable embargo of 1807.
These I am disposed, as you well know, neither to excuse, nor
to extenuate. Perhaps, I may be reminded of an authority, to
which I always delight to refer, 'Segnius irritant animos, etc.*
but let me tell such gentlemen that otir sufferings, under
political quacks of our own calling in, are not matter of hearsay.
It is true they are considered by the unhappy, misguided
patient as evidence of the potency, and consequently (accord-
ing to his system of logic) of the efficacy, of the medicine, as
well as the inveteracy, of the disease. It is not less true that
this last has become, from preposterous treatment, in the high-
est degree, alarming. The patient himself begins to suspect
713
714 Appendix
something of the sort, and the doctors trembling, each for his
own character, are quarrelling and calling hard names among
themselves. But they have reduced us to such a condition
that nothing short of the knife will now do. 'We must fight,
Mr. Speaker!' said Patrick Henry in 1775, when his sagacious
mind saw there was nothing else left for us but manly resist-
ance or slavish submission; and his tongue dared to utter what
his heart suggested. How much greater the necessity now,
when our country is regarded not as a property to be recovered,
and therefore spared, so far as is compatible with the end in
view, but as an object of vengeance, of desolation.
You know my sentiments of the men at the head of our
affairs, and of the general course of administration during the
last eight years. You know also that the relation, in which
I stand towards them, is one of my own deliberate choice;
sanctioned not more by my judgment than by my feelings.
You, who have seen men, in the ranks, when I commanded
in chief in the House of Representatives, and others, at that
time too green to be on the political muster roll, whose names
had never been pronounced out of their own parish, raised to
the highest offices. You, who are thoroughly acquainted with
the whole progress of my separation from the party, with
which I was once connected in conduct, do not reqtdre to be
told, that 'there was a time in which I stood in such favor in
the closet that there must have been something extravagantly
unreasonable in my wishes, if they might not ALL have been
gratified.' But I must acknowledge that you have seen
instances of apostasy, among your quondam political associ-
ates, as well as my own, that might almost justify a suspicion
that I, too, tired of holding out, may wish to make my peace
with the administration by adding one more item 'to the long
catalogue of venality from Esau to the present day.' Should
such a shade of suspicion pass across your mind I can readily
excuse it, in consideration of the common frailty of otir nature,
from which I claim no peculiar exemption, and the transcend-
ent wickedness of the times we live in; but you will have given
me credit for a talent which I do not possess. I am master of
no such ambidexterity; and, were I to attempt this game,
which it is only for adepts (not novices) to play, I am thor-
Appendix 715
oughly conscious that, like other bungling rogues, I should at
once expose my knavery and miss my object. Not that our
Political Church refuses to open her arms to the vilest of here-
tics and sinners, who can seal their abjuration of their old
faith by the prosecution of the brethren with whom they held
and professed it ; but I know that my nerves are of too weak a
fibre to hear the question ordinary and extraordinary from our
political inquisitors. I can sustain with composure and even
with indifference the rancorous hatred of thenumerous enemies,
whom it has been my lot to make in the course of my unpros-
perous life, but I have not yet steeled myself to endure the
contemptuous pity of those noble and high-minded men whom
I glory to call my friends; and I am on too bad terms with the
world to encounter my own self-disrespect.
You may however very naturally ask why I have chosen
you for the object of this address? Why I have not rather
selected some one of those political friends, whom I have
yet found 'faithful among the faithless,' as the vehicle of my
opinions? It is because the avenue to the public ear is shut
against me in Virginia, and I have been flattered to believe
that the sound of my voice may reach New England. Nay,
that it would be heard there, not without attention and re-
spect. With us, the press is under a virtual imprimatur, and
it would be more easy, at this time, to force into circulation
the Treasury notes than opinions militating against the ad-
ministration through the press in Virginia. We were indeed,
beginning to open our eyes in spite of the opiate with which we
were drugged by the newspapers and the busy hum of the
insects, that bask in the sunshine of court patronage, when
certain events occurred, the most favorable that could have
happened for our rulers; whose *luck,' verifying the proverb,
is in the inverse ratio of their wisdom; or, perhaps, I ought
to say who have the cunning to take advantage of glaring acts
of indiscretion in their adversaries at home and abroad, as
these may affect the public mind; and such have never failed
to come to their relief, when otherwise their case would have
been hopeless. I give you the most serious assurance that
nothing less than the shameful conduct of the enemy and the
complexion of certain occurrences to the Eastward would have
7i6 Appendix
sustained Mr. Madison after the disgraceful affair at Wash-
ington. The public indignation would have overwhelmed, in
one common ruin, himself and his hireling newspapers. The
artillery of the press, so long the instrument of our subjugation,
would, as at Paris, have been turned against the destroyer of
his country. When we are told that Old England says he
'shall,' and New England that he 'must,' retire from office, as
the price of peace with the one, and of union with the other,
we have too much English blood in our veins to submit to this
dictation, or to any thing in the form of a threat. Neither
of these people know any thing of us. The ignorance of her
foreign agents, not only of the country, to which they are
sent, but even of their own, has exposed England to general
derision. She will learn, when it is too late, that we are
a high-minded people, attached to our liberty and our country,
because it is free, in a degree inferior to no people under the
sun. She will discover that *our trade would have been worth
more than our spoil,* and that she has made deadly enemies of
a whole people, who, in spite of her and of the world, of the
sneers of her sophists, or of the force of her arms, are destined
to become, within the present (century?) a mighty nation. It
belongs to New England to say whether she will constitute a
portion, an important and highly respectable portion, of this
nation, or whether she will dwindle into that state of insigni-
ficant, nominal independence, which is the precarious curse
of the minor kingdoms of Europe. A separation made in the
fulness of time, the effect of amicable arrangements, may prove
mutually beneficial to both parties. Such would have been
the effect of American independence, if the British ministry
would have listened to any suggestion but that of their own
impotent rage; but a settled hostility, embittered by the
keenest recollections, must be the result of a disunion between
you and us, under the present circumstances. I have some-
times wished that Mr. Madison (who endeavored to thwart
the wise and benevolent policy of General Washington *to
regard the English like other nations, as enemies in war, in
peace friends') had succeeded in embroiUng us with the Court
of St. James twenty years sooner. We should in that case
have had the Father of his Coimtry to conduct the war and
Appendix 717
to make the peace ; and that peace would have endured beyond
the lifetime of the authors of their country's calamity and
disgrace. But I must leave past recollections. The present
and the inmiediate future claim our attention.
It may be said that in time of peace the people of every
portion of our Confederacy find themselves too happy to think
of division ; that the sufferings of a war like this are requisite to
rouse them to the necessary exertion. War is incident to all
governments; and wars, I very much fear, will be wickedly
declared and weakly waged even by the New England Con-
federacy, as they have been by every government (not even
excepting the Roman Republic) of which we have any knowl-
edge; and it does appear to me no slight presumption that the
evil has not yet reached the point of amputation when Peace
alone will render us the happiest (as we are the freest) people
under the sun — at least too happy to think of dissolving the
Union, which, as it carried us through the War of our Revo-
lution, will, I trust, bear us triumphant through that in which
we have been plunged by the incapacity and corruption of men,
neither willing to maintain the relations of peace nor able to
conduct the operations of war. Should I, unhappily, be mis-
taken in this expectation, let us see what are to be the conse-
quences of the separation, not to us but to yourselves. An
exclusion of your tonnage and manufactures from our ports
and harbors [will be one?] It will be our policy to encourage
our own or even those of Europe in preference to yours; a
policy more obvious than that which induced us of the South
to consent to discriminating duties in favor of American ton-
nage, in the infancy of this Government. It is imnecessary
to say to you that I embrace the duties on imports, as well as
the tonnage duty, when I allude to the encouragement of
American shipping. It will always be our policy to prevent
your obtaining a naval superiority, and consequently to cut
you off entirely from our carrying trade. The same plain
interest will cause us to prefer any manuf acttires to your own.
The intercourse with the rest of the world, that exchanges our
surplus for theirs, will be the nursery of our seamen. In the
Middle States you will find rivals not very heartily indisposed
to shut out the competition of your shipping. In the same
7i8 Appendix
section of country, and in the boundless West, you will find
jealous competitors of your mechanics. You will be left to
settle, as you can, with England, the question of boundary
on the side of New Brunswick; and, imless you can bring New
York to a state of utter blindness as to her own interests, that
great, thriving, and most populous member of the Southern
Confederacy will present a hostile frontier to the only States
of the Union of Hartford that can be estimated as of any
eflSciency. Should that respectable city be chosen as the seat
of the Eastern Congress, that body will sit within two days*
march of the most populous county of New York (Duchess), of
itself almost equal to some of the New England States. I
speak not in derision but in soberness and sadness of heart.
Rather let me say that, like a thoroughbred diplomatist, I try
to suppress everything like feeling, and treat this question as a
dry matter of calculation; well knowing at the same time, that,
in this, as in every question, of vital interest, 'our passions
instruct our reason. ' The same high authority has told us that
Jacobinism is of no country ; that it is a sect found in all. Now,
as our Jacobins in Virginia would be very glad to hear of the
bombardment of Boston, so, I very much fear, your Jacobins
would not be very sorry to hear of a servile insurrection in
Virginia. But such I trust is the general feeling in neither
country; otherwise I should at once agree that Union, like the
marriages of Mezentius, was the worst that cotild befall us.
For, with every other man of common sense, I have always
regarded Union as the means of liberty and safety; in other
words of happiness, and not as an end, to which these are to be
sacrificed. Neither, at the same time, are means so precious,
so efficient (in proper hands) [for ?] these desirable objects, to be
thrown, rashly aside, because, in the hands of bad men, they
have been made the instrument almost of our undoing.
You in New England (it is unnecessary I hope to specify
when I do not address myself personally to yourself) are very
wide of the mark, if you suppose we to the South do not suffer
at least as much as yourselves from the incapacity of our
rulers to conduct the defence of the country. Do you ask why
we do not change those rulers? I reply, because we are a
people, like your own Connecticut, of steady habits. Our
Appendix 719
confidence, once given, is not hastily withdrawn. Let those
who will abuse the fickleness of the People; I shall say such is
not the character of the People of Virginia. They may be
deceived, but they are honest. Taking advantage of their
honest prejudices, the growth of our Revolution, fostered not
more by Mr. Jefferson than by the injuries and (what is
harder to be borne) the insults of the British ministry, since
the Peace of 1783 a combination of artful men has, with the
aid of the Press, and the possession of the machinery of
government (a powerful engine in any hands) led them to the
brink of ruin. I can never bring myself to believe that the
whole mass of the landed proprietors in any country, but
especially such a country as Virginia, can seriously plot its
ruin. Chir Government is in the hands of the landed proprie-
tors only. The very men, of whom you complain, have left
nothing undone that they dared to do in order to destroy it.
Foreign influence is unknown among us. What we feel of
it is, through the medium of the General Government, which,
acted on itself by foreign renegadoes, serves as a conductor
between them and us of this pernicious influence. I know of
no foreigner who has been, or is, in any respectable oflSce in
the gift of the People, or in the Government of Virginia. No
member of either House of Congress, no leading member of oiu*
Assembly, no judge of oiu* Supreme Courts [is such a person?]
Of the newspapers printed in the State, as far as my knowledge
extends, without discrimination of party they are conducted by
native Virginians. Like yourselves, we are an unmixed people.
I know the prejudice that exists against us, nor do I wonder at
it, considering the gross ignorance on the subject that prevails
north of Maryland, and even in many parts of that neighboring
state.
What member of the Confederacy has sacrificed more on
the altar of public good than Virginia? Whence did the Gen-
eral Government derive its lands beyond the Ohio, then and
now almost the only source of revenue? From our grant, — a
grant so curiously worded, and by our present Palinurus too,
as to except ourselves, by its limitations, from the common
benefit.
By its conditions, it was forbidden ground to us, and thereby
720 Appendix
the foundation was laid of incurable animosity and division
between the States on each side of that great natural boundary,
the river Ohio. Not only their masters, but the very slaves
themselves, for whose benefit this regulation was made, were
sacrificed by it. Dispersion is to them a bettering of their
present condition, and of their chance for emancipation. It is
only when this can be done without danger and without ruin-
ous individual loss that it will be done at all. But what is
common sense to a political Quixote?
That country was ours by a double title, by charter and by
conquest. George Rogers Clark, the American Hannibal, at
the head of the State troops, by the reduction of Post Vincen-
nes obtained the lakes for our northern boundary at the Peace
of Paris. The march of that great man and his brave com-
panions in arms across the drowned lands of the Wabash does
not shrink from a comparison with the passage of the Thrasy-
mene Marsh. Without meaning anything like an invidious
distinction, I have not heard of any cession from Massachu-
setts of her vast wilds; and Connecticut has had the address,
out of our grant to the firm, to obtain, on her own private
account, some millions of acres; whilst we, yes we (I blush to
say it) have descended to beg for a pittance out of the property
once our own for the brave men by whose valor it had been
won, and whom heedless profusion had disabled us to recom-
pense. We met the just fate of the prodigal. We were
spurned from the door, where once we were master, with
derision and scorn; and yet we hear of undue Virginian in-
fluence. This fund yielded the Government, when I had
connection with it, from half a million to eight hundred thous-
and dollars annually. It would have preserved us from the
imposition of State taxes, founded schools, built bridges and
made roads and canals throughout Virginia. It was squand-
ered away in a single donative at the instance of Mr. Madison.
For the sake of concord with our neighbors, by the same
generous but misguided policy, we ceded to Pennsylvania
Fort Pitt, a most important commercial and military position,
and a vast domain around it, as much Virginia as the city of
Richmond and the county of Henrico. To Kentucky, the
eldest daughter of the Union, the Virginia of the West, we have
Appendix 721
yielded on a question of boundary, from a similar consideration.
Actuated by the same magnanimous spirit, at the instance of
other States, with the exception of New York, North Carolina
and Rhode Island, we acceptedin 1783 the present Constitution.
It was repugnant to our judgment, and fraught, as we feared,
with danger to otir liberties. The awful voice of our ablest
and soundest statesmen, of Patrick Henry and of George
Mason, never before or since disregarded, warned us of the
consequences. Neither was their coimsel entirely unheeded;
for it led to important subsequent amendments of that instru-
ment. I have always believed this disinterested spirit, so
often manifested by us, to be one of the chief causes of the
influence which we have exercised over the other States.
Eight States having made that Constitution their own, we
submitted to the yoke for the sake of union. Our attachment
to the Union is not an empty profession. It is demonstrated
by our practice at home. No sooner was the Convention of
1788 dissolved than the feuds of federalism and anti-federalism
disappeared. I speak of their efiEects on otir councils. For the
sake of union we submitted to the lowest state of degradation
— ^the administration of John Adams. The name of this
man calls up contempt and derision, wheresoever it is pro-
nounced. To the fantastic vanity of this political Malvolio
may be distinctly traced our present unhappy condition. I
will not be so ungenerous as to remind you that this personage,
of whom and his addresses and his answers I defy you to think
without a bitter smile, was not a Virginian, but I must, in
justice to ourselves, insist in making him a set-off against Mr.
Madison. They are of such equal weight that the trembling
balance reminds us of that passage of Pope where Jove weighs
the beau's wits against the lady's hair!
The doubtful beam long nods from side to side,
At length the wits mount up, the hairs subside.'
Intoxicated not more by the fulsome adulation with which
he was plied than by the ftmies of his own vanity, this poor
old gentleman saw a visionary coronet suspended over his brow
and an airdrawn sceptre, 'the handle towards his hand,' which,
VOL. 11—46
722 Appendix
attempting to clutch, he lost his balance, and disappeared,
never to rise again. He it was who, 'enacting* Nat. Lee's
Alexander, raved about the People of Virginia as 'a faction,
to be humbled in dust and ashes,' when the sackcloth already
was prepared for his own back.
But I am spinning out this letter to too great a length.
What is your object ? PEACE ? Can this be attained on any
terms whilst England sees a prospect of distmiting that Con-
federacy which has already given so deep a blow to her mari-
time pride, and threatens at no very distant day to dispute
with her the empire of the ocean? The wound, which our
gallant tars have inflicted on her tenderest point, has
maddened her to rage. Cursed as we are with a weak and
wicked administration, she can no longer despise us. Already
she begins to hate us; and she seeks to glut a revenge, as im-
potent as it is rancorous, by inroads that would have disgraced
the buccaneers, and bulletins that would only not disgrace the
sovereign of Elba. She already is compelled to confess in her
heart what her lips deny, that, if English bull-dogs, and game-
cocks degenerate on our soil, English MEN do not; and should
(which God forbid) our brethren of the East desert us in
this contest for all that is precious to Man, we will main-
tain it, so long as our proud and insulting foe shall refuse
to accede to equitable terms of peace. The Government
will then pass into proper hands, the talents of the country
will be called forth, and the schemes of moon-struck philos-
ophers and their disciples pass away and 'leave not a rack
behind.*
You know how, steady and persevering, I endeavored for
eight years to counteract the artful and insidious plans of
our rulers to embroil us with the country of our ancestors, and
the odiiun which I have thereby drawn upon myself. Believ-
ing it to be my duty to soften as much as possible the asperi-
ties, which subsisted between the two countries, and which
were leading to a ruinous war, I put to hazard, nay, exp>osed to
almost certain destruction, an influence such as no man,
perhaps, in this country, at the same age, had ever before
attained. (The popularity that dreads exposure is too deli-
cate for public service. It is a bastard species. The true
Appendix 723
sort will stand the hardest frosts.) Is it my fault, as Mr.
Burke complained of the crowned heads of Europe, that Eng-
land will no longer suffer me to find palliatives for her conduct ?
No man admired more than I did her magnanimous stand
against the tyrant, before whom all the rest of Christendom at
one time bowed. No man, not even her own Wilberforce and
Perceval, put up more sincere prayers for her deliverance. In
the remotest isle of Australasia, my sympathy would have
been enlisted, in such a contest, for the descendants of Alfred,
and Bacon, and Shakespeare, and Milton, and Locke, on whom
I love to look back as my illustrious countrymen. In any
contest, I should have taken side with Liberty; but on this
depended (as I believed and do still believe) all that made my
own country dear in my sight. It is past, and, unmindful of
the mercy of that protecting Providence, which has carried
her through the valley of the shadow of death, England *feels
power and forgets right.' I am not one of the whining set of
people who cry out against mine adversary for the force of his
blow. England has, unquestionably, as good a right to con-
quer us as we have to conquer Canada; the same right that we
have to conquer England, and with about as good prospect of
success. But let not her orators declaim against the enormity
of French principles when she permits herself to arm and
discipline our slaves, and to lead them into the field against
their masters, in the hope of exciting by the example a general
insurrection, and thus render Virginia another St. Domingo.
And does she talk of Jacobinism? What is this but Jacobin-
ism? and of the vilest stamp? Is this the country that has
abolished the slave trade? that has made that infamous, in-
human traffic a felony? that feeds with the bread of life all who
hunger after it, and even those who, but for her, would never
Have known their perishing condition ? Drunk with the cup of
the abomination of Moloch, they have been roused from the
sleep of death, like some benighted traveller perishing in the
snows, and warmed into life by the beams of the only true
religion. Is this the country of Wilberforce and Howard? It
is; but, like my own, my native land, it has fallen into the
hands of evil men, who pour out its treastire and its blood at
the shrine of their own guilty ambition. And this impious
7^4 Appendix
sacrifice they celebrate amidst the applauses of the deluded
people, and even of the victims themselves.
There is a proneness in mankind to throw the blame of their
sufferings on any one but themselves. In this manner, Vir-
ginia, is regarded by some of her sister States; not adverting
to the fact that all (Connecticut and Delaware excepted) are
responsible for the measures that have involved u» in our
present difficulties. Did we partition your State into those
unequal and monstrous districts which have given birth to a
new word in your language, of tmcouth sound, calling up the
most odious associations? Did we elect the Jacobins whom
you sent to both Houses of Congress, the Bidwells, and Gan-
netts, and Skinners, to spur on the more moderate men from
Virginia to excesses which they reluctantly gave into at the
time, and have since been ashamed of? Who hurried the bill
suspending the privilege of the writ of HABEAS CORPUS
through a trembling servile Senate, in consequence, as he did
not blush to state, of a verbal communication from the Presi-
dent? A Senator from Massachusetts, and professor in her
venerable university. In short, have not your first statesmen
(such I believe was the reputation of the gentleman in question
at the time), your richest merchants, and the majority of your
delegation in Congress vied in support of the men and the
measures that have led to our present suffering and humiliated
condition?
If you wished to separate yourselves from us, you had ample
provocation, in time of peace, in an embargo, the most uncon-
stitutional and oppressive; an engine of tyranny, fraud, and
favoritism. Then was the time to resist (we did not desert
England in a time of war), but you were then under the domin-
ion of a faction among yourselves, yet a formidable minority,
exhibiting no signs of diminution; and it is not the least of my
apprehensions, from certain proceedings to the eastward, that
they may be made the means of consigning you again, and for
ever, to the same low, insolent domination. The reaction
of yotir Jacobins upon us (for although we have some in Vir-
ginia, they are few and insignifidant) through the men at
Washington ('who must conciliate good republicans,') is dread-
ful. Pause, I beseech you, pause ! You tread on the brink cf
Appendix 7^5
destruction. Of all the Atlantic States, you have the least
cause to complain. Your manufactures, and the trade which
the enemy has allowed you, have drained us of our last dollar.
How then can we carry on the war? With men and steel,
stout hearts and willing hands, and these from the days of
Darius and Xerxes, in defence of the household gods of freedom
have proved a match for gold. Can they not now encotmter
paper? We shall suffer much from this contest; it will cut
deep; but, dismissing its authors from our confidence and
councils for ever (I speak of a few leaders and their immediate
tools, not of the deluded, as well in as out of authority), we
shall pass, if it be the good pleasure of Him, whose curses are
tempered with mercies, through an agony and bloody sweat, to
peace and salvation; to that peace which is only to be fotmd in
a reconciliation with Him. 'Atheists and madmen have been
our lawgivers,* and when I think on otir past conduct I shudder
at the chastisement that may await us. How has not Europe
suffered for her sins ! Will England not consider, that, like the
man who but yesterday bestrode the narrow world, she is but
an instrument in his hands who breaketh the weapons of his
chastisement, when the meastire of his people's punishment is
full?
When I exhort to further patience ; to resort to constitutional
means of redress only, I know that there is such a thing as
tyranny as well as oppression ; and that there is no government,
however restricted in its power, that may not, by abuse, under
pretext of exercise of its constitutional authority, drive its
unhappy subjects to desperation. Otir situation is indeed
awful. The members of the Union in juxtaposition, held to-
gether by no common authority, to which men can look up
with confidence and respect. Smitten by the charms of
Upper Canada, our President has abandoned the several
States, to shift for themselves as they can. Congress is felo de
se. In practice, there is found little difference between a
government of requisitions on the States, which these disregard,
or a government of requisitions on the people, which the
governors are afraid to make, until the public faith is irretriev-
ably ruined. Congress seems barred by their own favorite act
of limitations from raising supplies. Prescription runs against
726 Appendix
them, but let us not despair of the Commonwealth. Some
master-spirit may be kindled by the collision of the times who
will breathe his own soul into the councils and armies of the
Republic. And here, indeed, is our chiefest danger. The
man, who is credulous enough to believe that a constitution,
with the skeleton of an estabUshment of 10,000 men, not 2,000
strong (such was our army three years ago) is the same as with
an army of 60,000 men, may be a very amiable neighbor, but is
utterly unfit for a statesmen. Already our government is in
fact changed. We are become a miUtary people, of whom
more than of any other it might have been said f or luncUos suasi
bona norini. If, under such circumstances, you ask me what
you are to do, should a conscription of the model of Bona-
parte be attempted, I will refer you to its reputed projector.
Colonel Monroe. Ask him what he would have done, whilst
Governor of Virginia, and preparing to resist Federal usur-
pation, had such an attempt been made by Mr. Adams
and his ministers; especially in 1800. He can give you the
answer.
But, when you complain of the representation of three-fifths
of our slaves, I reply that it is one of the articles of that com-
pact which you submitted to us for acceptance, and to which
we reluctantly acceded. Our Constitution is an affair of
compromise between the States, and this is the master-key
which unlocks all its difficulties. If any of the parties to the
compact are dissatisfied with their share of influence, it is an
affair of amicable discussion in the mode pointed out by the
constitution itself, but no cause for dissolving the Confederacy.
And, when I read and hear the vile stuff against my country
printed and uttered on this subject, by fire-brands, who ought
to be quenched forever, I would remind, not these editors of
journals and declaimers at clubs, but their deluded followers
that every word of these libels on the planters of Virginia
is as applicable to the Father of his Country as to any
one among us; that in the same sense [that] we are *slave-
holders' and *negro drivers* and 'dealers in himian flesh* (I
must be pardoned for culling a few of their rhetorical flow-
ers) so was he\ and, whilst they upbraid Virginia with her
Jeffersons and her Madisons, they will not always remem-
Appendix 727
ber to forget that to Virginia they were indebted for a
Washington.
I am, with the highest respect and regard, dear sir, your
obedient servant,
John Randolph of Roanoke."
Notes
739
NOTES
VOLVHB I
P. 3 (a)
" There are along the river [the James] the ruins of many houses, which
I was told had been accidentally burnt by the negroes whose carelessness
is productive of infinite mischief." Notes on a Journey in America, by
Morris Birkbeck (3rd Ed.), 181 8, 14. Three of the Southside Virginia
houses which sheltered Randolph during the different stages of his existence
— Cawsons, Matoax and Bizarre — were consumed by fire, and so also, in
1879, was the frame dwelling which was one of the two buildings in which
he lived at Roanoke, after it had become the home of the Hon. Wood Boul-
din, an upright and able judge, whose memory is still cherished in Virginia.
P. 14 (a)
Among the painful things in that clever, but repulsive, book. The Educa-
tion of Henry Adams, is the detraction to which Adams subjects the intel-
lectual character of General William Henry Fitzhugh, or "Roony," Lee,
who was one of his classmates at Harvard on the eve of the Civil War.
He was not a scholar, he had no mental training, he was very simple in
character, no one knew enough to know how ignoiant he was — these are
some of the kindly observations that Adams had to make, after the mel-
lowing lapse of forty-seven years, on a college comrade, for whom he says
that he entertained an tmbroken and even warm friendship. It was such
friendship as this, we imagine, that first provoked the question: "What
is friendship but a name? " Indeed, so confidential does Adams become
with his readers that he even tells them that, when Gen. Winfield Soott
offered young Lee a military commission, the latter asked Adams to write
his letter of acceptance for him. This confidence, however, we confess
is not highly enough appreciated by us, at any rate, to make us forget the
observation of Henry S. Randall, the biographer of Jefferson (v. 2, p. 210)
that under such circumstances the well settled rule among gentlemen is
that the publication of the authorship should depend entirely upon the
will of the ostensible author., Altogether, as the result of his "momentary
contact" with Lee and two other Virginians in his class, whom, with Lee,
he likens to Sioux Indians, out of place, Adams declares that his self-esteem
as a Yankee was flattered by gaining the slow conviction that the South-
erner, with his slave-holding limitations, was as little fit to succeed in the
struggle of modem life as though he were still a maker of stone axes, living
in caves, and hunting the bos primigenius. If Lee did not shine as a scholar
731
732 Notes
at Harvard, it is hard to see why such a oommon occurrenoe should be used
in such a malignant manner for the purpose of disparaging not only him
but a whole people, especially as it is not necessary to go outside of the
Lee family to find two persons who did excel in academic competitaoa;
namely, Robert £. Lee, who stood second in his class at West Pbint, and
George Washington Custis Lee, his son, who stood first in his at the same
institution — ^facts the importance of which it would be much easier to
exaggerate, if, like *' Roony " Lee at Harvard, Ulysses S. Grant and " Stooe-
wall" Jackson had not had but a poor scholastic standing at West Point
It must be admitted, of course, that "Roony" Lee lacked the litexaiy
capacity — to say nothing of the unwholesome nature and dreary views
both of this world and the next necessary for the composition of such a book
as The Education of Henry Adams; whidi was but the last convulsive twitdi
that its author gave to the dtdl ear of public attention when he had all
but relinquished in despair the hope of ever acquiring a solid fame like
that of his three immediate ancestors. It is certain, too, that "Roony"
Lee lacked the inclination, whether he lacked the ability or not, to fill sudi
a post as Adams filled abroad during the Civil War, when "the sweet
clarion's breath " was stirring "the soldier's scorn of death, " and thousands
of gallant young men, such as his brother, Charles Francis Adams, the
younger, and "Roony" Lee, were sealing their faith with their blood on
the battlefields of Virginia. But if "Roony" Lee could not have written
The Education of Henry Adams, could Henry Adams have successfully
commanded a brigade in the Army of Northern Virginia, or in the Army of
the Potomac? The question, of couise, cannot be put without a smile; and,
if Adams could not, then until human ideas about the relative merit ol
academic writers and men of action shall undergo a profounder change
than they have yet undergone, the public judgment will be slow to consign
"Roony" Lee to the humble place in the scale of intellectual superiority
to which Adams consigns him, and will readily find a sufiSdent compensa-
tion for any scholastic deficiencies that may have been justly attributed
to him at Harvard in the description which Henry Adams himself gives of
him in other respects: "Tall, largely built, handsome, genial, with liberal
Virginian opermess towards all he liked, he had also the Virginian habit of
command, and took leadership as his natural habit. " Nor will the fact be
overlooked that two much more remarkable men than either Henry Adams
or *'Roony" Lee — Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant — did not disdain
in their military careers to avail themselves freely of the literary facility ol
Col. Charles Marshall and General Adam Badeau, respectively. " Roony"
Lee was a gallant and skillful officer and an indefatigable and useful member
of Congress, and it can be truly said that in private life his sterling
virtues, amiable traits, and maimers as bland and gentle as his heart was
brave and inspiring to the hearts of others endeared him to all who knew him.
P. 15 (a)
It would be easy to mention not a few living descendants of T^Hlliaxn
Randolph of Turkey Island, who are suooessfully sustaining the prestige
Notes 733
of his name today; such as Isham Randolph, of Chicago, the celebrated
engineer; John Randolph Bland, of Baltimore, the founder and President
of the United States Fidelity and Guaranty Co., one of the great guaranty
and fidelity companies of the world; Harold Randolph, of Baltimore, the
Director of the Peabody Conservatory of Music, and John Skelton Wil-
liams, Comptroller of the Currency, under the administration of Woodrow
Wilson. At one time in the present century, a majority of the Vi-ginia
Supreme Court of Appeals, Judges James Keith, George M. Harrison, and
Stafford G. Whittle, were descendants of William Randolph. Some Law-
yers in Colonial 7a., by Armistead C. Gordon.
P. i6 (b)
**1 know one of my ancestors was a gentleman," declared Randolph,
"for he was a king. " Nathan Loughborough MSS.
P. 17 (a)
In his John Randolph^ published in 1882, Henry Adams states that not
an acre of this land then belonged to a Randolph, but that the Randolphs
or anyone else might have bought back the whole of it for a song at any
time within half a century. But it can at least be said that an abandoned
farm, a thing that has been by no means uncommon even in such an indus-
trious and thrifty community as New England, is a phenomenon which
has never been known to Southside Virginia. In 1890, the Lower Quarter
of the Roanoke estate owned by John Randolph, which contained 1,027
acres, was sold for $20,000, or, at the rate of about $20.00 an acre. Mul-
tiply the 40,000 acres of Richard Randolph of Curies by $20.00, and the
product will be $800,000 — a sum which may have been a song to Henry
Adams, but would have been more like a grand crash of orchestral harmony
to a Southside Virginian in 1882. However, it must be admitted that
$20.00 an acre was a liberal price for the Lower Quarter in 1890.
P. 18 (a)
In his John Randolph, Henry Adams states that Richard Randolph of
Curies disposed by will in 1742 of 40,000 acres of land, including Matoax.
(P. j) The will of Richard Randolph was executed on Nov. 18, 1747
(Henrico Co,, Va,, Deed and Will Book for 1748-50, Va. State Libr,), and
he never owned Matoax at all. It was purchased by his son, John, the
father of John Randolph of Roanoke, many years after the death of Rich-
ard. {Will Book 2, p. 328, Chesterfield Co,, Va., Clerk's Office,)
P. 25 (a)
For this politeness the British made him a poor return. When Phillips
and Arnold invaded Southside Virginia in 178 1, PhiUips in express requital
for it issued an order that no part of the property of Col. Theodorick Bland,
Sr., at Cawsons, should receive any injury from His Majesty's troops. But
they chose to construe the order hterally , raided the home of CoL Theodorick
Bland, Jr., at Farmingdale, broke his furniture to pieces, pounded up his
china-ware, destroyed his crops and Hve-stock and carried off his negroes.
Hiit. of the Colony, eU,, of Va., by Chas. Campbell, 721.
734 Notes
p. 30 (a)
"Among New Engknders, Chief Justice P&rsons was the modd of
judicial, sodal, and religious propriety; yet Parsons in 1808 presented to a
lady a copy of Tom Janes with a letter calling attention to the adventures
of Molly Seagrim, and the usefulness of describing vice. " Hist, cf ths U.
S.f hy Henry Adams, v, i, 48.
P. 31 (a)
In one of his letters, Randolph said that there were times when the chaos
of his mind could be compared with nothing but the state that poor Cowper
was in before he found peace, or rather after the death of Mis. Unwin.
Garland, v. 2, /07.
P. 32 (o)
His land adjoined Matoax.
P. 45 (a)
It is stated by Garland that Randolph was not inclined to the atheltic
outdoor sports of which boys are so fond, v, i, /j. This assertion is
supported by no evidence to our knowledge. From an early age we find
him engaging in all the healthy open-air pastimes which belonged to the
life of Southside Virginia; such as trapping, fishing, htmting, and riding.
His brother, Beverley Tucker, tells us that, when a boy, he was not only
remarkable for personal beauty, but for "fondness for athletic sports.''
The Hist. Mag. {1850), v. 3, 187. He even took his gun with him to
Philadelphia, when he went to that City in his youth, and often shot over
the ground between the upper ferry and the Palls of the SchuylkilL Lei-
ters to a Y. R., /p.
P. 59 (o)
A description of Grigsby by Dr. James Waddell Alexander deserves
transcription, though written in rather an elliptical way: "I have met
here an original. is a Yale man, about as deaf as .
He has an office built in the yard lined with glazed cases, wherein 2,000
voltmies. As much of littStateur as I ever saw. Was a member of the
Viiginia Convention in 1830. Thorough scholar in Greek, Latin and
Prench. Perfect health and athletic vigor. A boxer in all the forms; as
to diet and bathing almost a Comaro. He has not eaten warm bread for
ten years. Shaves in his shirt in a cold room in winter. A pedestrian,
has walked all over Canada and several times over New England. The
last day of his return from Canada to Norfolk he walked 55 miles, and then
was at office business on his feet till 10 at night. Por this journey he
trained on Captain Barclay's scheme, two meals a day of raie beef and
Madeira and stale bread, this for three weeks. He has every sort of gym-
nastical contrivance, always stands at study with legs wide apart, and no
support. His chest is like the keel of a boat. He is an intimate friend ol
Upshur, Judge B. Tucker and other ultra States-Rights men, to whidi
Notes 735
party he belongs. I have met with nothing like him for knowledge of
history, biography, heraldry and the like. He is an eloquent talker."
Forty Years* Familiar Letters, vol. /, J52. March 21, 1842,
P. 68 (a)
"I am now with my friend, Col. Mercer, of Fredericksburg. Tomorrow
I set off for Richmond, and from thence almost immediately to Williams-
burg to see Cabell, who has lately married one of the finest and richest
girls in Virginia. " Letter from Washington Irving to Miss Mary Fairlie,
^o,y /J, /^o/, Irving by Irving, v. /, igo,
P. 79 (a)
Every now and then the old slander shows some signs of animation, but
for all practical purposes it has been dead ever since 1856, when The Vindi-
cation was republished by Peter V. Daniel, supported by letters from Chief
Justice Roger B. Taney, George Bancroft, and others, expressing their
confidence in the entire innocence of Randolph. ^ *'His argument (I mean
Randolph's)," declares Taney, after a merciless dissection of the case
which very justly did not spare even Washington, "is conclusive. " Edmund
Randolph, by Moncure D, Conway, 34Q-353* The departure of Washington,
in the Fauchet case, from the habitual principles of rigid justice, which all
but invariably governed his conduct, may well be compared to
"A spot upon a vestal's robe,
The worse for what it soils. "
Edmund Randolph was not only an honorable man, but, in many regards,
a very amiable one. *'To respect, nay, to love Mr. Randolph, " Benjamin
H. Latrobe says in his Diary, " it is only necessary to see him at his fireside
— the father, the husband and the friend. " John H. B, Latrobe and His
Times, by John E. Semmes.
P. 91 (a)
"We are now Httle better than the trustees of slave labor for the nabobs
of the East, and of the North (if there be any such persons in our country)
and to the speculators of the West. They regulate our labor. Are we to
have two masters? When every vein has been sluiced — when our whole
system presents nothing but one pitiful enchymosis — are we to be patted
and tapped to find yet another vein to breathe not for the Federal Govern-
ment but for our own? " Speech of J. R, on the Basis of Representation in
the Va, Conv,, of 1820-30. Debates, 318.
P. 94 (a)
Many years afterwards he stated in the House that he had spent almost
every day in attendance upon the sittings of the first Congress.
P. 95 (a)
" Mr. James Innes, the Attorney General of the State, (also a Colonel)
lanks, I think, first in genius, in force of thought and power of expression*
736 Notes
and in effect of voice and manner. He is at the same time a man of the
most amiable and benevolent disposition, open, geneious and unreserved;
more I think of the character of Charles Fox than any other man I ever
knew. His only fault is indolence. " Diary of Benjamin H. Latrobe, John
H. B. Latrobe and His Times, by John B. Semmes, 7.
Side by tdde with the testimony of this discriminating critic, we might
as well place the "coarse praise" which Latrobe tdls us was bestowed upon
Innes by one of his rustic auditors: "HehashisbellyfuUof words and they
come pouring along like a great fresh. " Id.^ 8.
P. 1 10 (a)
After reading the names of these Justices, we can readily understasd
why Chief Justice Marshall and Benjamin Watldns Leigh should have
been such earnest upholders in the Viiginia Convention of 1829-30 of a judi-
cial system that commanded the gratuitous services of the dass in Viiginia
most conspicuous for wealth, intelligence and social prominence. To the
old County Cotuts and the freehold suffrage, which withstood the levelling
influence of Jefferson until 1851, was unquestionably due the eztnordinary
capacity exhibited by Virginia for filling the highest public places with the
men worthiest, in point of character and talent, to fill them. Marshall
thought that the fact that in no part of America was there less disquiet,
or less ill-feeling between man and man than in Virginia, was mainly refer-
able to its County Courts. Debates, $05^ And in speaking of the success
with which they had performed their judicial and other duties, Leigh said:
"There is a purity, an easy unassuming, unconscious dignity, and, above
all, an impress of neighborly kindness seen and felt in the administration
of all their powers, which has endeared these tribtmals to the people and
procured for them universal respect. " Debates, 5/4.
P. 124 (a)
"Each," Hugh Blair Grigsby tells us in his Discourse on TazeweU, "was
a supreme master of reasoning in his respective department, and, if we look
along their entire course at the bar, it is hard to say which of the two won
the most verdicts. Perhaps, though both of these able men wielded at
times an almost omnipotent sway over juries and over the Bench, yet it
may be said that the style of Tazewell was more decisive with the Court,
and that of Taylor with the jury. " {P. 36) Taylor was also famous for
his colloquial powers. So. Lit, Mess., v. 18, loi. Tazewell is the Sidney,
and Taylor the Herbert, in the sketches of the two by William Wirt in
The Old Bachelor,
P. 129 (a)
Garland states that Mrs. Dudley's husband had died when she came to
Bizarre, (v. /, 63) but this was not the case. On Feb. 12, 1808, Randolph
wrote to Theodore Dudley, her son: "I have heard nothing from your
father or mother since I Ic^t home. " Letters toa Y, R., 46.
Notes 737
p. 130 (a)
If Thompson had not died early in life, there can be little doubt that,
with the sobering influence of time, he would have fully redeemed his
promise. He was a college mate of Littleton Waller Tazewell at William
and Mary, and by Tazewell he was pronoimced the most wonderful young
man that he had ever seen. Discourse on Tatewell, by Grigsby, 13,
P. 141 (a)
Creed Taylor has suffered the last indignity to which an once celebrated
American can be subjected — that of being wholly omitted from our popu-
lous cyclopaedias of American biography. He is nothing; not even an
academician; yet in his time he was a vigorous and learned lawyer, the
founder of an useful law school, a Virginia Chancellor, and a highly in-
influential politician; not to speak of the aristocratic bearing and elegant
manners which set off his intellectual and social gifts to great advantage.
With the decline of his health in his later years, his temper is said to have
become so hasty and arbitrary that, on one occasion, when Peachy Gilmer,
a member of the Bar, reminded him that the clock wanted three-quarters
of an hour of twelve o'clock, the hour that he had fixed for the reas-
sembling of the court, he exclaimed passionately "Gentlemen, I will
have you in future to know that when / take my seat on the bench it is
12 o'clock ! ' ' Sketches of Lynchburg, by the oldest inhabitant, {Mts. Cabell) 58,
P. 142 (a)
Randolph does not seem to have added the words "of Roanoke" to his
signature before the year 18 10. The first instance of his doing so, was, we
believe, at the foot of a letter written by him to Dr. George Logan, on Jan.
24, 1 810. He adopted the words, there is little reason to doubt, to distin-
guish him from a kinsman, John Randolph, one of the brothers of Judith
and Nancy Randolph, who resided at no great distance from Bizarre. This
man was described by John Randolph of Roanoke as a person of infamous
character, and a homeless vagabond, in a letter dated Roanoke, May 27,
181 1, which was written to James M. Gamett (7. M, Garneti, Jr., MSS.)
shortly after the other John Randolph had made a murderous assault upon
the writer, which might have cost him his life; and all because the subject
of the assault had been guilty of the outrage of seeking to collect from him
the sum of £14 due by him for service to his mare by a stallion at Bizarre:
"I have every reason to suppose," said Randolph, incensed by the rabid
animosity of his political enemies, "that this fellow with whom I never
had any intei course further than to speak when we met, was instigated
probably hired, (for he is needy and desperate), to commit the deed. I was
wholly unaimed, yet he drew a knife upon me, and would have stabbed
me, if it had not closed as he struck. He did cut my coat. I gave him the
lash, and afterwards the butt end, of Leigh's whip, leaving a mark upon him
that he will not soon lose." The assailant, who bore the nickname "Pos-
sum," according to Randolph's Diary, was further described by Randolph
VOL. II — 47
738 Notes
in his letter as a man of great strength and a professed bully, and was anned
with a pistol, loaded with saddler's tacks, as well as with the knife; but, with
the exception of a slightly lacerated eye Randolph issued from the fracas
without injury. With true refinement of feeling, he endeavored to keep the
knowledge of this disgraceful affair from Judith; but she heard of it, and
wrote to him in these terms, stem enough to have befitted the story of that
other Judith and Holof ernes : "I have heard since I saw you of the ruffian-
like assault which has been made upon you. In justice to my own feelings,
I must declare my utter abhorrence of it. Since his marriage, I have never
seen the object who has been guilty of this cowardly action, and I now
sincerely hope I never may." /. R, to James M, GameUt June 23, 181 1,
J. M. GartieU, Jr., MSS,
P. 143 M
Joel Watkins, it is believed.
P. 147 (o)
"He spake as never man spake"; "In eloquence his deceit was deeper
than the bottom of the sea " ; " The united powers of painting and eloquence
oould alone give a faint idea of the character of Henry"; are other utter-
ances about Henry imputed to Randolph.
P. 153 (a)
To this may be added a sentence or so from the abstract of Randolph's
career by his brother, Beverley Tucker, published in the Historical Maga-
zine ^ 1859, V. 3, 187: "Candidate for Congress in '99. Unknown to the
people. Boy in appearance. No family influence or connection in District;
elected by the power of his eloquence."
P. 165 (a)
"I have never been insensible to my numerous failures as a public
speaker; on the contrary, I believe not one of the audience has been so
deeply impressed with the sense of them as myself. I have a perception
equally clear to my more fortunate and happy efforts, perhaps the best of
these (certainly not inferior to any) was my effort against the Bankrupt
Bill about two years ago. It never appeared but fell still bom from my lips
— nay I doubt if ten persons in the country ever knew that I had spoken at
all ; and this has been the uniform fate of my best performances in this way
— The Connecticut Reserve, the first Yazoo debate, and some others." J,
R. to James M. Garnett, Jan. 14, 1824, J. M. Gamett, Jr., MSS.
P. 165 (b)
"The skeleton of the speech has been mounted by some bungler, who
knows nothing of political osteology," he wrote to Theodore Dudley on one
occasion. " I feel ashamed of myself — not only stripped of my muscle, but
my very bones disjointed." Feb. 11, 1813, Letters toa Y. R., 137.
P. 167 (a)
In a letter to James M. Gamett, dated March 22, 1820, Randolph said:
Notes 739
«
I want to have Spencer Roane for President. *En dot Virginia guartum,*
and if we can't get him, I want a Roanoke planter from the North State."
/. M. GameU, Jr., MSS. A few months after these words were written,
John Quincy Adams entered the following observations on Macon in his
Memoirs: "Macon is a stem Republican, who has been about 25 years
without interruption in Congress — a man of small parts and mean edu-
cation; but of rigid integrity, and a blunt, though not offensive, deport-
ment. He was several years Speaker of the House of Representatives, and
is now one of the most influential members of the Senate. His int^^ity,
his indefatigable attention to business, and his long experience give him a
weight of character and consideration which few men of far superior minds
can acquire." v, St ^0$, Nov. 2J, 1830.
P. 185 (a)
In narrating the history of the Yazoo fraud, we wish to acknowledge our
indebtedness to Albert J. Beveridge, the author of the widely read Life of
John Marshall, for the assistance derived by us from his thorough investi-
gation of the authorities relating to that monstrous transaction; and also
to make a similar acknowledgment, in connection with the subsequent
portions of the present work, which bear upon the Chase trial, and the
character of the City of Washington at the beginning of the nineteenth
century.
P. 203 (a)
"Harper is diffuse, but methodical and clear. He argues with consider-
able warmth, and seems to depend upon the deliberate suggestions of his
mind. I incline to think that he studies his causes with great diligence, and
is to be considered as in some degree artificial." Jos. Story to Sam*l P. P,
Fay, Feb. 16, 1808, Story, by Story, v. i, 162.
P. 204 (a)
In a letter from Joseph Story to Sami P. P. Pay, dated Washington,
Feb. 16, 1808, Lee is presented to the eye of our time in this spectral fashion :
"Lee, of Virginia, is a thin, spare, short man. You cannot believe that he
was Attorney General of the United States. I heard him speak for a few
minutes, but the impression is so faint that I cannot analyze it." Story, by
Story, V. 1, 163.
P. 205 (a)
As Judge Chase was no more bigoted in his hatred of Democrats, than
Dr. Samuel Johnson was in his hatred of American Whigs, it is but fair to
say that no less a person than Joseph Story was of the opinion that he also
possessed some of the strong points of Dr. Johnson: "In person, in
manners, in unwieldly strength, in severity of reproof, in real tenderness of
heart, and, above all, in intellect, he was the living, I had almost said,the
eacact, image of Samuel Johnson." Letter to Fay, Feb, 25, 1808, Story, by
Story, V. 1, 168.
740 Notes
p. 207 (a)
By a process of laborious inflation, Pedeialist writers, in their desire to
traduce Jefferson and John Randolph, have ptiffed up the figure of Luther
Martin to a degree of distension that is quite artificial. If the distempered
description given by John Quincy Adams of the final speech of Randolph
in the Chase case is to be accepted, what value are we to assign to the great
volume of testimony to the personal and professional defects of Martin,
who was happily termed, by one of the Virginia Mercers, " the Thersites of
the law"? BlennerhasseU Papers, 378. "Martin," declares Blennerhassett
in connection with one of Martin's forensic efforts in the Burr trial, "at last
concluded with the adjournment this evening. Want of arrangement,
verbosity and eternal repetitions have more than sated the malice of his
enemies." BlennerhasseU Journal, Oct. 14, 1807, BlennerhasseU Papers^ 4$$,
Describing Martin a little later, Joseph Story says : " Nothing in his voice,
his action, his language impresses. Of all men he is the most desultory,
wandering and inaccurate. Errors in grammar, and indeed an unexampled
laxity of speech mark him everywhere. All nature pays contribution to his
argument, if indeed it can be called one. You might hear him for three
hours, and he would neither enlighten nor amuse you, but, amid the abun-
dance of chaff, is excellent wheat, and, if you can find it, the quality is of the
first order. In the case to which I have alluded (a case in the Supreme
Court) he spoke three days. I heard him as much as I could, but I was
fatigued almost to death." Letter to Sam'l P, P, Fay, WashingUm, Feb. 16,
1808, Story, by Story, v. i, 164,
P. 211 (a)
**I find that Federal members have every day listened to John Randolph
with unmixed pleasure in opposition to the mean, dastardly Democrats of
N. England!" Timothy Pickering to Rufus King, Washington, Jan, /j,
j8o6, Life of King, by King, v. 4, 476,
Four years later, Nathaniel Macon wrote to Joseph H. Nicholson : " The
Feds seem to be in good spirits. They pay more attention to oiu* friend
[Randolph] than I ever saw one set of men pay to any man." Apr. 3^ 18 10,
Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
P. 211 (b)
It has usually been thought that the biographer should have a certain
amount of general sympathy, at least, with the subject of his work but the
hereditary hatred of the Adams family for Randolph was apparently
considered a better qualification when Henry Adams was selected to write
his life. With such satisfaction does Adams chuckle over this description of
Randolph borrowed from Ovid's description of Envy that in his John
Randolph he hastens to cap the two lines quoted by his grandfather with
three more from the same context equally derogatory. (P. 2q6). In
another place {P. 284), he says that "it was not for an instant imagined or
imaginable that either of the Yankee Presidents (John Adams and John
Notes 741
Quincy Adams) ever entertained any other feeling than contempt" for
Randolph. If Adams had no proper sense of delicacy to tell him that such
an exhibition of family spleen as this could not fail to disgust all fair-minded
men, he might at least, one would think, have had a sufficient sense of true
literary expediency to avoid such a violation of biographical decency. In
quoting his two lines from the Metamorphoses, John Quincy Adams
unwarrantably added an "est" after "macies" in the first Kne, and omitted
an intervening line,
**Nusguam recta acies, livent rubigine denies"
He might have quoted the first half of this line too, for Randolph's vision
gave him a great deal of trouble at times; but not the second, for Randolph's
teeth were faultlessly clean and white.
P. 219 (a)
The Diary of John Randolph contains the following bit of gossip in regard
to Granger, and the charge made by James Thompson Callander that
Jefferson had been turned out of the House of a certain Major Walker for
writing a love letter to his wife: "Gideon P. M. G. holds his office by a cer-
tain tenure. When a prosecution was commenced at common law in
Connecticut for a libel upon Mr. J., he wrote to Granger confidentially and
intrusted certain papers to him relating to Mrs. W 's affair, which the
wary Yankee refused to give up. He was alternately threatened and
soothed by the P. and his agents, but to no purpose; and, although he is for
the best reasons hated by Mr. M n, and, what is of more moment, by
Mrs. M n, he boasts that he will retain his place under the new P."
The Diary also asserts elsewhere that when John Marshall, as the bio-
grapher of Washington, proceeded to examine the latter's correspondence,
which had been entrusted by Bushrod Washington to Tobias Lear, the pri-
vate secretary of Washington, all the letters from Jefferson to Washington
were found to be missing, and it hints a connection between this fact and the
fact that Lear had obtained from Jefferson an honorable and lucrative
appointment, which he still held by no precarious tenure.
P. 220 (a)
Decidedly petty was the other form in which the chagrin of Randolph
over the result of the Chase trial was exhibited: that of endeavoring to
prevent the expenses incurred by Judge Chase in the production of his
witnesses from being paid out of the Federal Treasury.
P. 250 (a)
But Randolph experienced no difficulty in subjecting Bidwell to extra-
dition for the purposes of parliamentary punishment at least. At a time
when the invasion of Canada was on every tongue, he said in the House:
"At the motion of a gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Bidwell), who had
anoe taken a great fancy also to Canada, and had marched off thither in
advance of the Committee on Foreign Relations, |2,ooo,oao were appropri-
742 Notes
ated towards (not in full of) 'any extraordinary expense wfaidi might be
incurred in the intercourse between the United States and foreign nations';
in other words, to buy off at Paris Spanish aggressions at home." A,ofC^
i8ii'i2, V, 1, 44S.
P. 252 (a)
Nathaniel Macon to Joseph H. Nicholson, Wash., Jan. 6, 1807. Nickdsm
MSS., Libr, Cong.
P. 252 (b)
Hist, of U. 5., by Adams, viii, 167. But did Jefferson have anything to
do with this matter? Nicholson was also offered the ooUectorship of the
Port of Baltimore by Jefferson; but declined it Jos, Bryan to J. IL, Dec
28, j8o6, Bryan MSS.
P. 255 (a)
"His method of attack was always the same: to spring suddenly, vio-
lently, straight at the face of his opponent, was his invariable rule; and in
this sort of rough-and-tumble he had no equaL" John Randolph^ by Henry
Adams, lyz.
P. 257 (a)
Indeed Sloan — ^for the worm will turn — drew quite a vivid picture of
Randolph, when, with his back to the wall, Randolph was warding off the
blows of his enemies with almost frenzied violence: "Has he been so
enamoured with the conduct of the once patriotic statesman, but afterward
apostate Burke, as to induce him to make a puerile attempt to exhibit on the
floor of that House his impressive and energetic mode of delivery by exerting
his weak nerves and feeble arm to cause the pens, the papers, the books and
the hats to fly in every direction, in so much that, if they had been musket
balls, instead of those light materials, the American patriot would soon
have been left to exhibit the remainder of his superlative eloquence within
empty walls." A, of C.^ i8os~OT, mo.
P. 265 (a)
No book with which we are acquainted that is worth reading at all is
such a mass of errors as Sawyer's biography. They are scattered over its
pages as thickly as the pits over a badly pock-marked face; and it would be
a waste of time to point out even a tithe of them. He says, for instance,
that Randolph spoke only once in the Virginia Convention of 1829-30;
(P. ijo) when a cursory examination of the printed Debates of the Con-
vention would have shown that Randolph spoke in it over and over again.
He also says that Randolph "did not attend during the Congressional
Session of 181 8, being detained at home by indisposition" (P. 73) when his
own presence as a member in the House of 181 8, if nothing else, should have
reminded him that Randolph was not even a member of the House in 1 818.
P. 269 (a)
Testifying in the Randolph Will Litigation, Captain William Smith, a
tavern keeper at Charlotte Court House, with whom Randolph was in the
Notes 743
habit of stopping, when he was at that place, said: " During the whole of
the period between 1820 and 1829, he [Randolph] was the most clear-headed
and sensible man I ever saw or knew."
P. 269 (b)
"Whatever may have been his (Randolph's) shortcomings, by reason of
bad health and other deficiencies more or less beyond his control, in making
his exertions effective, the political doctrines and principles which he
advocated were well adapted to the support of a system like ours — indeed
those only by which we can hope to uphold it in its integrity" AiUobiog. of
Martin Van Buren, 428.
P. 275 (o)
Speaking of the position of Randolph in the House just after the nego-
tiation of the Treaty for the Purchase of Louisiana, Henry Adams says
"His influence in the House became irresistible." John Randolph^ 8$.
P. 281 (a)
The idea of Henry Adams that Randolph went back to Bizarre in April,
1806, a "ruined statesman, " and never again represented anybody but him-
self, or had any but mere rags and tatters of political principles (John
Randolph, ig4, igs), is not only entirely foreign to the true facts of the case,
but hopelessly at war with his own observations, in his John Randolph and
History of the United States, in which he repeatedly certifies in the strongest
terms to the extraordinary influence exerted by Randolph in many respects
in opposition. The feelings entertained for Randolph by his constituents
and thousands of other citizens of the United States during the later stages
of his Congressional career were enthusiastically voiced by E. W. Duval in a
letter, dated March 31, 1828 {Nathan Loughborough MSS.): "I was, as
you are well aware, even in my boyish days, a warm and decided admirer
not only of the peculiar and splendid talents, but of the political course and
character, of Mr. Randolph. In all the changes that have taken place in
men and measures within my recollection, I have never been able to dis-
cover in him any departure from the principles of his early life. This and
his great and felicitous endowments, together with the fearless independ-
ence, which disdains to *feign a feeling or to conceal a truth,' by which the
whole history of his career is so strikingly characterized, place him, in my
estimation, on a more enviable and exalted eminence than is occupied by
any other public man of the present day. I would not, in solemn serious-
ness,— I declare it — exchange, could I possess his natural gifts, learning and
acquirements, his present standing and prospects of future fame for those of
the numerous aspirants to the highest ofiSce in the gift of the people."
P. 284 (a)
"You are as well known, and have as high a reputation in England as
Monroe himself." Jos. Bryan to J. R,, March 8, 1807, Bryan MSS.
744 Notes
p. 284 (b)
In these observations Randolph's arguments against Gregg's Resolution
are justly termed "very powerful and eloquent." P. 8,
P. 292 (a)
On another occasion, he assailed the Senate in these words: "I am free
to declare that when a measure, tending to impose a burden on the people,
or to detract from the privileges of the citizen, comes fiom that quarter, I
shall always view it with jealousy. The inequality of the representation in
that branch, the long tenure of office, and the custom with whic^ they are
so familiar of conducting their proceedings in conclave . . . render all their
proceedings touching the public burdens or the liberties of the people
highly suspicious." A. of C, iSos-^T; v, 2, 417,
P. 294 (a)
After telling us that Randolph said in 1817 that he had voted in favor of
the bill to prohibit trade with San Domingo, which came up in the House in
1806, Henry Adams says: "He was mistaken. He did not vote at alL"
{John Randolph, 188.) If Randolph said in 1817 that he voted in favor of
this bill, he said no more than he said on May 6, 181 2, too. (^4 . of C, 1811-
12; V. 2, J 404.) Why should the journal of a Legislative body be accepted
as infallible, when twice contradicted by the memory of an irreproachably
truthful member?
P 296 (a)
"The present Grand Jury (the most enlightened, perhaps, that was ever
assembled in this country) will be discharged." Letter from Washington
Irving to Mrs, Hoffman, Richmond, June 4, 1807, Life, dfc, of W, /., by
Irving, V. J, 192,
P. 300 (a)
There are several descriptions of Richmond as it was at or about the time
of the Burr trial, which were written by persons whose judgment could not
be colored by birth or residence in Virginia. ** I am absolutely enchanted
with Richmond," Washington Irving declared in one of his letters from
that City, written during the pendency of the Burr trial, "and like it more
and more every day. The society is polished, sociable and extremely hospi-
table." Irving, by Irving, v. i, 196. In the succeeding year, Edward
Hooker gives us this highly effective little picture of Richmond in his Diary:
"Richmond appears beautifully as you approach, and view it from the hills,
a mile distant. The Capitol towers pre-eminent, and appears gigantic
indeed among the other buildings. The side of the hill from the rivex up to
the top seems covered with clusters of buildings. Remote from the center,
on the right and left, a mile or two, and at a still greater distance, handsome
seats crown the top and sides of the mountain, scattered here and there.
Above you hear the roaring of the waters, and see its white sheet here and
there between the xx>cks and islands. Below a calmer scene invites you to
Notes 745
look at the shipping, which lies clustered in a basin or bend of the river. As
you come up, you pass through Manchester, a separate corporation on this
side of the river; then, crossing the very long, tall bridge, at the foot of the
falls, you enter one of the most beautiful cities on the continent. Richmond,
as I viewed it a mile or two off, appears more like some of the drafts of
European cities, particularly those on the banks of the Rhine, than any I
had ever seen. Walked up a very steep hill indeed, and visited the Capitol
soon after my arrival. The House of Delegates had just met, and chosen
Mr. Hugh Nelson, of Albermarle, their Speaker, and were proceeding to
business. It seemed the most dignified body I ever beheld. The room
was spacious and very elegant. The members in elliptical seats, ai\d
around the Speaker's chair. All, with very few exceptions, were well
dressed and easy and graceful in deportment. Many young, mostly middle-
aged, and few or none are quite old. Many spoke shortly, and with ease,
grace and composure on the returns of elections from Amherst County."
i8g6 Report of Amer. Hist. Assoc., v. i, 917.
What Hooker says about the manner in which the members of the
Viiginia Legislature were dressed does not accord with the ideas that
Joseph Story expressed on the same subject in a letter to Saml P. P. Fay,
dated May 30, 1 807 : " You know Virginians have some pt ide in appearing
in simple habiliments, and are willing to rest their claim to attention upon
their force of mind and suavity of manners." Story by Story, v. /, 15/.
To the eye of John Melish, an English traveller, who passed through
Richmond in 1806, it was "a large elegant city, consisting of more than one
thousand houses," and containing "about eight thousand inhabitants."
The ladies in Richmond, too, "appeared veiy handsome "; nor did he fail to
note that the town already had the manufacturing bent which has always
given it a distinctive place of its own among Southern Cities. Travels
Through the U. S. in 1806, &c., 160.
Richmond also early acquired a reputation for good cheer worthy of a
State that might well be termed the mother of cook-books as well as
Presidents. In one of his letters to Nicholson, Randolph declared that good
eating and drinking were as well understood and practiced upon there as at
Capua itself. Richmond, June 6, 18 10, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong,
P. 317 (a)
"Almost every respectable officer of the old service regarded Wilkinson
with antipathy or contempt." Hist, of U. S., by Henry Adams, v. 7, 174.
By Albert J. Beveridge he has been recently pronoimced not only a corrupt
pensioner of Spain but a "fecund liar." Life of John Marshall, v. j, JS4
(note 2).
P. 324 (a)
It was in this same year that Joseph Story wrote to Joseph White a letter
in which he termed Randolph a speaker in the House of the first class.
Feb, 3, 1808, Story by Story, v, i, 161.
746 Notes
p. 325 (a)
John Randolph was suspected of writing for the press above the name
"One of the Protesters," and, in a letter to Dabney Carr, dated May 11,
1808, Wm. Wirt said : " When I said in the Enquirer that I should be glad
to receive the promised respects of 'one of the Protesters,* I made sure that
John Randolph was coming out. I would have engaged with Achilles, bat
I do not relish a combat with one of his myrmidons. ' ' Life of Wiiliam Wirt,
by Kennedy, v, 1,231, There is still another reference to Randolph by
Wirt. "John Randolph," he wrote to the same correspondent, "has not
gone on (to Washington), and to hear him speak was the pfimum mobile of
Peter's project and mind. I am very anxious to hear John Randolph.
They tell me that he is an orator, and I am curious to hear one; for I never
yet heard a man who answered the idea I have formed of an orator. He has
ever been ambitious, and I do not doubt that from the time he was seven-
teen years old he has been training himself most assiduously for public
speaking." Id., v, i, 2^3.
P. 327 (a)
"Some men are bom for the public. Nature, by fitting them for the
service of the human race on a broad scale, has stamped them with the
evidences of her destination and their duty." Jefferson to Monroe, Jan. /j,
i8o3t Works of T. J., v. 4, 4$$.
P. 343 (a)
This was the second occasion on which Randolph visited Monroe in
Albemarle County. In 1809, he made an equestrian excursion to the
Valley of Virginia, visiting his brother Henry at Winchester, and his sister
near Staunton, and then stopping on his way to Bizarre at the home of
Monroe, whom he describes as being at that time "almost as recluse as a
hermit," though busily engaged in the cultivation of a good estate of 2800
acres and the management of about 20 hands. /. R, to James M. Gamett,
July 31, i8og; J. M. Gamett, Jr., MSS. On his second visit to Monroe,
only a change in his original itinerary saved him from an awkward rencontre
there with the Jeflfersons — the royal family as Randolph calls them — who
had just paid a visit to Monroe. /. R, to J. M, G., Oct, 10, iSiOt J, M, Gar-
nett, Jr., MSS.
P. 345 (o)
The correspondence between John Randolph and James M. Gamett
establishes the fact that, when the opportunity was held out to Monroe
by Madison of renewing his party connection with Jefferson and his friends,
he was very desirous before doing so of obtaining the approval of his own
"Old Republican" friends, including John Randolph, and of taking them
back into the party fold with him; and that, with a view to accomplishing
these objects, he sounded certainly John Taylor of Caroline, Benjamin
Watkins Leigh and Randolph. Taylor, from a high-minded desire to pro-
mote through Monroe the political principles, to which he was so religiously
Notes 747
devoted, favored the re-establishment of cordial relations between Monroe
and the Jeffersonians; but Randolph did not, though he declined to advise
Monroe whether he should become Secretary of State in Madison's cabinet
or not, when Monroe solicited his advice on that subject. James M. Gar-
neU to J. R., Feb, 19, iSii, /. Af. GarneU, Jr.. MSS; /. R, to James M.
Gamett, Apr, 11, 181 1, Id, There could be no better proof of Randolph's
political disinterestedness, for he wrote to Gamett three days afterwards:
"What think you of S. of S.? I believe it will be so. Glamis and
Cawdor— the greatest is behind." March 19, 1811, J, M, Gamett^ Jr.,
MSS.
P. 348 (a)
The worst thing that Monroe is reported to have said of Randolph, after
the estrangement between them, was this to Judge Watson: "Mr. Ran-
dolph is, I think, a capital hand to pull down, but I am not aware that he
has ever exhibited much skill as a builder." James Monroe, by Daniel C.
GUman, Amer, Statesmen Series, 190,
P. 348 W
Only a short time before Monroe accepted the post of Secretary of State
under the Madison administration, he wrote to Tazewell in these terms:
"I fear, if the system of policy which has been so long persevered in, after
so many proofs of its dangerous tendency, is still adhered to, that a crisis
will arise, the dangers of which will require all the virtue, firmness and
talent of our coimtry to avert; and that it will be persevered in seems too
probable while the present men remain in power. . . . And, if the blame
of improvident and injudicious measures is ever to attach to them among
the people, it must be by leaving to the authors of those measures the entire
responsibility belonging to them." Feb, 6, 181 1, Monroe MSS,
P. 349 («)
Nor probably was this Randolph's cooler or more habitual view of the
matter. That was rather of the nature of the one expressed by him in a
letter to James M. Gamett, dated Feb 17,1811: "I pity from the very
bottom of my soul. I am persuaded that he has been more weak than
wicked; that he is habitually and incurably ambitious; that he cannot live
without office; the stimulus of pubHc consideration having become necessary
to his existence. The resources of his own mind and estate cannot support
him. He is not naturally flagitious. He has saa ificed no more of principle,
and his friends no farther, than was absolutely indispensable to the attain,
ment of his object." /. M, GameU, Jr., MSS.
Chief Justice Marshall or Chancellor Kent could not have shaded justice
with nicer precision. James M. Gamett and Benjamin Watkins Leigh
thought that, even if Monroe did go over, at least "a personal intercourse
and a reciprocity of friendly offices" might still subsist between Monroe
and Randolph. But neither John Randolph nor John Mercer could see
748 Notes
the matter in that light. /. M. G, to J, R,, Feb, 26, 181 1; J. R. to J. M.
C, March /j, j8ij; /. M, Garnett, Jr.^ MSS,
Even if Monroe oackslid a little after he got into office, he might yet do
some good to the cause, was Garnett's idea. "For," said Gamett em-
phatically, "he will always be in office." Letter to J, R., Feb. 26, 1811,
J. M, G., /r., MSS.
It is obvious that Randolph was the real obstacle to Monroe's desire to
return to Federal office with a comforting and imposing queue of Terttnm
Quids behind him to keep him in countenance and strengthen his bandSb
But the renewal of homage by Monroe to the party influences, with whidi
he had been hardly less deeply disaffected than Randolph, could not fail
to excite a certain amount of derisive contempt in other breasts than
Randolph's. "What do you think," wrote Randolph to Gamett, on Feb.
4, 181 1 , "of the emissary [George Hay], who was dispatched to me on a late
occasion, 'having signalized himself a few days ago at a public dinner by
hanging on the skirts of Mr. G s (Giles), who repelled him with gred
dignity imtil the wine placed all the company on a leveL' So reads one
of my late letters, and the wiiter adds that ^he most profound contend
is pouring on him from every quarter.* Hear another of my correqxnid-
ents on the same subject: 'I am well informed that at a dinner given by
certain members of the Assembly to the late Governor T., which was meant
in reality as a Slate Dinner, in honor of the reunion (as it is called) of the
Republicans, that person fastened himself upon G s in spite of visible
efforts in the latter (who is not at all pleased, as you may suppose at the
reunion) to shake him off; sat by him at diimer, in spite of his teeth, tngigtjng
on waiting on him, changing his plate, filling his wine and the Hke menial
offices; in short, courted him throughout the day with an assiduity which no
coyness could avoid, no coldness repel, until at last the Great Man, wanned
with wine and softened by submission and penitence, did condescend to
bestow some little notice upon him.*" J. M. G., Jr., MSS. The whole
attitude of Randolph towards Monroe and Hay, when they were
seeking by personal interviews to induce him to "rat** too, was one of
contemptuous amusement. "Yesterday,** he said in a letter to Gamett,
" called upon me, and in the afternoon his envoy. Both seemed
disposed that I should forget late transactions, and there was a visible
effort to forget it themselves, which, like an effort to go to sleep, served only
to make the matter worse. ' * Richm, , Mar, 16,1811, J.M. Garnett, Jr. , MSS.
P. 354 M
The newspaper commimications signed "Mucins,** and "One of the
Protesters," respectively, which were published during the long running fire
of hostility, kept up by Randolph and his friends with Jefferson and his
friends, have been ascribed to Randolph; but he was the author of neither.
Beverley Tucker was the reputed author of the latter. /. R. to James M.
Garnett, May 27, and July 24, 1808, J. M, Garnett, Jr,, MSS. Aside
irom the "Decius" letters, we know of none, either anonymous or
pseudonymous, written by Randolph for the press. It is very much to be
Notes 749
regretted that he never apparently completed his reminiscences, which he
certainly commenced. Letter to J. M, Garnett, Aug. 31, 1807, J. M. GameU,
Jr., MSS. Except for the purpose of writing letters, which he threw off
in showers, he was, as he said of himself in a letter to Gamett. ** but a poor
scribe." June ip, 1806, J. M. GarneU, MSS. And this has been true
of many another orator, whose tongue was too fluent to render the friction
of pen and paper otherwise than insufferably irksome to him.
P. 358 (a)
On just what groimds Federalist writers, like Henry Cabot Lodge and
Henry Adams, have reached the conclusion that William B. Giles was an
unworthy man, in point of character, is not very clear. Perhaps, if his
remarkable powers as a debater had not been so successful in exposing the
privileged and proscriptive side of Federalism, his moral standing with
them might be higher. "Giles, of Virginia, whom no man ever trusted
without regret," is a phrase in the John Randolph of Henry Adams. {P.142)'
But how can such purely academic extravagance or partisan strabismus
impose upon anyone when it is recollected that the people of Virginia, asidp
from the occasional remissions of popularity which are inseparable from a
political career, trusted him from his youth until he could no longer move
or stand without the aid of his crutches, and never trusted him with any
r^ret, whether as a member of the House of Representatives, or of the
United States Senate, or as Governor of Virginia, or as a member of the
Virginia Convention of 1829-30, that has not long ago been swallowed up in
the lasting recollection of his remarkable talents and eminent services.
There is nothing in his life to suggest any uncorrmion elevation of character
or refinement of feeling, but we know nothing tending to show that he did
not comply faithfully with all his private as well as official duties. When he
is judged by the standards of his own time and place, the mind submits
impatiently for a moment to the apparent insensibility exhibited by him to
the menaces of John Randolph on several occasions; but it is manifest on
the whole that he was simply disposed to make the fullest allowance for
Randolph's heady temper, and that there was a point of endurance beyond
which he was firmly prepared to hold Randolph to accoimt on the duelling
field.
P. 367 (a)
"I look upon him (Crawford) as the ablest man in our councils. He
certainly possesses more of my confidence than any other man in Congress.
There is a singleness of heart about him, a plain manly good sense, and a
certain fairness of character that wins my regard and esteem. There is no
trash in his understanding, no crooked double-dealing in his conduct." /.
R. to J. H. Nicholson, Jan. 1/, 18 13, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong.
P. 385 (o)
Randolph wrote to James M. Gamett on one occasion that a newspaper
article signed " No Time-Server," if he had any skill in such matters, would
750 Notes
make certain gentry wince like a thin-skinned horse beset with May flies
in their pine woods; but the laiger fly, commonly known as "the horse-fly/'
is a greater nuisance even than the May fly.
P. 400 (a)
"This war, my old comrade, has been in most of its features tLCwilfBor—
as such at least it has proved to me. It has rent the nation in twain, it has
dissolved the oldest friendships, it has severed the ties of blood." 7. H
to Richard Stanford, April p, 1814, J. M. GarneU, Jr., MSS.
P. 426 (a)
It seemed so probable that, if John Randolph were beaten in 1815, in Ub
own District, he would be elected to the house from another CongressioDal
District in Virginia, that the Jeffersonian Republicans brought in a Bill in
the Virginia Legislature which sotight to prohibit the election of anyone to
the House outside of his own District. Life of Jefferson, by Randall, 9.
J. 401.
P. 426 (b)
The absences of Randolph fxx>m his seat during the two sessions preceding
the Congressional Election in 181 1 were among the things that cut down
his majority in his District at that election. /. R. to J. M. GameU, Apri
16, 18 J J, and A pril 20, 181 1, J, M. Gamett, Jr., MSS, 111 health, considered
in connection with the long exposure of a winter journey over frightful roads
from Roanoke to Washington, was doubtless usually the cause of his
occasional tardiness in leaving Roanoke at the begiiming of the Congress-
ional session.
P. 451 (o)
" On one occasion, when Mr. Clay, speaking in his not unusual personal
and self-sufficient strain, declared, among other things, that his parents had
left him nothing but indigence and ignorance, Randolph, turning to Mr.
Seaton, said in a stage whisper to be heard by the House: " The gentleman
might continue the alliteration, and add insolence." Wm. Winston Seaton,
A Biographical Sketch, 1^2.
P. 453 (o)
Describing Randolph as he was at the time of the Missouri Compromise,
Goodrich says: "As he uttered the words 'Mr. Speaker,* every member
turned in his seat, and, facing him, gazed as if some portent had suddenly
appeared before them. 'Mr. Speaker,* said he in a shrill voice, which,
however, pierced every nook and comer of the hall, *I have but one word
to say; one word, Sir, and that is to state a fact. The measme to whidi
the gentleman has just alluded originated in a dirty trick. ' ' RecottecHons cf
S. G, Goodrich, 744,
Notes 751
p. 454 (0)
The distance that Randolph maintamed between himself and President
Monroe also kept him aloof from William Wirt when the latter became a
member of President Monroe's Cabinet. To this he refers in a letter to
Francis W. Gilmer. Feb. 6, 1822, Bryan MSS, But, long before Monroe
became President, Randolph had expressed in singularly pointed terms his
distaste for the meretricious finery in which that gifted and charming man
sometimes tricked out his arguments in early life. Describing a speech by
Wirt in a case involving the will of Abner Osborne, which he had recently
heard at Powhatan Court House, he says: "At Powhatan C. H. I heard
the great Mr. make a speech of 9 hours; mark me I heard only the last
half and it would have been thought bad even in Congress. It was a tangled
tissue of faded metaphors and languid figures and bore evident marks of the
Green Room, the Property Man, and the Prompter about it." Letter to
James M, Garnett, May 27, 181 1, J. M. Gamett, Jr., MSS.
P. 524 (o)
The reconciliation between Clay and Randolph was too dramatic, how-
ever, to last, and, after the duel. Clay very sensibly allowed his challenge to
it to suffice as a salve to his wounded honor on subsequent occasions also,
when the hostility of his friends to Randolph had drawn from Randolph
language about Clay as opprobrious as that which had provoked the duel.
In his Speech on Retrenchment and Reform in the House, in 1828, Ran-
dolph, after charging point-blank that there had been a "collusion and a
corrupt collusion" between John Quincy Adams and Clay, added: "He
had taken office imder Mr. Adams and that very office, too, which had been
declared to be in the line of safe precedents — that very office which decided
his preference of Mr. Adams. Sir, are we children? Are we babies? Can't
we make out apple-pie without spelling and putting the letters together — a
>, ap, p — ^1 — e, pie, apple, p — i — e, pie, apple-pie? " Bouldin, 28Q.
P. 536 (a)
Randolph's failure of re-election to the United States Senate was partly
due to the pride of character which made it difficult for him to consult the
little arts of political conciliation. Writing to Littleton Waller Tazewell
from Washington on Feb. 15, 1826, just after his election to the United
States Senate, he said of the Virginia Legislature: " Of the 24 Senators, I
knew 4; of the 216 Del^ates, I knew 14 (8 of them from my late District);
of the rest, to the best of my knowledge, I had never seen but one,
M n and B ^h." L. W, Tazewell, Jr. MSS,.
P. 538 («)
The loss of influence which Randolph suffered from his extravagance in
the Senate was all the more to be deplored in view of the fact that in one of
his letters to Dr. John Brockenbrotigh he expressed the opinion that a seat
in the Senate was certainly to be preferred to any other position in the
Government. Feb. 11, 1827, Garland, v. 2, 284.
752 Notes
p. 544 M
Randolph derived no little gratification from the fact that 20 years after
his deposition from the Chairmanship of the Committee of Ways and
Means of the House he was again made a member of that Committee.
Reg, of Deb., 1827-28, v, 4, Part i, 1040.
P. 544 W
"What business," he said in a note to this speech, when referring to the
judges who so far forgot their function as to take a prominent part in the
proceedings of the Convention held at Ridmiond for the purpose of promo-
ting the re-election of John Quincy Adams, "have these 'most forcible Peeb-
les' in the van of election battles? Who gave them the right or the power to
call conventions, forsooth, and excommunicate and anathematize their
betters, in every point of view that gives value to the character of man?
Let them stick to their dull, heavy, yet light, long-winded opinions in the
Court of Appeals, wheie to our sorrow and to our cost they may play *Sv
Oracle* — where, when they ope their lips no dog must bark — ^but ithaX
they say must be received as law in the last resort — ^without appeal. No
bill of exceptions can be tendered to their honors. Yes, let them keep to
their privileged sanctuary. For if these men, who are great by title and
office only, shall attempt to interfere with men at arms, let me tell them that
their judicial astrology will stand them in little stead: 'There is no Royal
road to the Mathematics': and these ex officio champions will fare like the
delicate patrician troops of Pompey at the battle of Pharsalia. The Tenth
Legion will aim at their faces — ^and our fair-weather knights must exped
to meet with cracked crowns and bloody noses, and to staunch them as they
may.
But have you no respect for the ermine? Yes, as I have for the lion's
sldn, but none at all for the ass beneath it. I was bred in a respect for
the ermine, for I lived when Pendleton, Blair, and Wythe composed the
'High Court of Chancery* in Virginia. Yes, I respect the pure ermine of
justice, when it is worn as it ought to be — ^and as it is by the illustrous judge
who presides in the Supreme Court of the United States, with modest
dignity and impretending grace. I was bred in a respect for it approaching
to religious reverence. But it is the impolluted ermine that I was taught to
venerate. Draggled in the vile mire of an election — reeking in the fumes
of whiskey and tobacco — it is an object, not of reverence, but of loathing
and disgust. 'A parson may jttot* (say the canons of many churches) 'use
himself as a layman. ' And a judge is, so to speak, a lay parson. He should
keep himself emphatically 'imspotted tcom. the world. ' " Bouldin, 312.
P. 560 (a)
The acoustics and the atmosphere of the House were chronic causes
of irritation to Randolph. "We meet in a room," he declared on one
occasion, "in which we can neither hear nor see." A. of C, 181^20, v. i,
1066, In a letter to James M. Gamett, he termed the House "Pandemon-
ium where it is impossible to hear what is said or to read what is printed."
Notes 753
Jan. II, 1820, /. M, Gamett, Jr., MSS. In one of his letters to Dr. Biock-
enbrough, he told him that the atmosphere of the House was visible and
palpable, and that one might take it between his fingers like ill-grotind meal.
Apr. 10, 1828 f Mrs. Gilbert S. Meem, MSS. Long before that time he had
wiitten to St. George Tucker that he could compare the House of Repre-
sentatives to nothing but the famous Dog Hole near Naples. March zj,
i8iOf Lucas MSS.
P. 569 M
Seaton, the editor of the National Intelligencer, was of the opinion that
the fear in which the tongue of Randolph was held in the House was an
influence that counted not a little in the preservation of order in the House.
John Quincy Adams took a very different view of the matter. Randolph,
he thought, could no more keep order than he could keep silence. Memoirs,
P. 575 io)
The dose intercourse between man and pig disclosed by this narrative
deprives one of Randolph's observations (made doubtless to an Irishman)
of some of its htmior: "Our pigs have not had the advantage of being
reared as one of the family circle." Nathan Loughborough MSS.
P. 576 {a)
Nor was this the only thrifty territory between Washington and Rich-
mond. " The surrotmding country (at Fredericksburg) is in a high state of
cultivation, and exceeded by none in fertility or beauty.** Sketches of Hist.,
fire, in the U. S.,by a Traveller, 118 (1826). And whatever else might be
asserted of stage travel between Washington and Richmond, the vehicles
and horses were capital. On May 18, 1826, Randolph said in the Senate:
" I have never seen such fine teams, such good carriages in my life as on that
road." Niles Reg., July i, 1826 v. 6 {3rd series), 326.
P. 579 W
"Provisions are most abundant and cheap in Virginia. . . . The dinner
this day, the i6th of February, was in all respects equal to Major Lomax'
antidpations; consisting of roast turkey, a whole ham, roast beef, canvass
back ducks, a pie of game, potatoes, hominy, etc." Three Years in North
America, by James Stuart (1833), *'• ^» 5^-
P. 582 M
One accident is thus described in a letter from Randolph to James M.
Gamett : "I was not in the least hurt. Just on this side of R . Kenna's my
horse made a sudden stait. The shaft, which was cracked before, as it
appeared, cracked loudly. He attempted to run off and tried to kick, but
I held him too closely. He had not got 50 yards when first one shaft and
then the other gave way, and I tumbled into the road nolding the reins, and
stopped the horse, who turned xound and looked at the miscaief he bad done
VOL. 11—48
754 Notes
with little apparent alarm and no concern." Dec. 27, iSzy, /. M, CameUt
Jr„ MSS,
P. 583 W
"Major Lomax bought some canvass backs from the Hotel keeper at
Occoqtian, at a shilling, sterling, apiece." TTiree Years in North America,
by Jos. Stuart (1833), «'• 2. 49-
P. 592 (a)
The plan on which the still-hunt pursued by Eppes in 181 1 was conducted
was described by Randolph with his usual perspicacity in a letter to James
M. Gamett, dated March 19, 181 1: "My enemies, I find, have been
playing a deep game, and have played it too with great skill and address.
An emissary (P. C.) [Peter Carr] from the 'Old Man of the Mountain'
[Jefferson] has been slyly moving about the country, visiting Yancey
'Judge' Johnson, etc. All the initiated have been busily at work like
moles undergroimd, and this has been and is their plan of operation; to
assail me by every species of calumny and whisper, but Parthian-like never
to show their faces or give battle on fixed ground; moving about from
indi\ridual to individual and securing them man by man. On the day of
election, a poll will be held for Mr. Eppes. This saves him the mot tification
of a defeat, while it secures him more votes than if he were to offer and have
his pretensions fairly canvassed. It will operate as an irresistible invita-
tion to the proffer of his future services at a subsequent election and serve
as a standard by which to measure the probabilities of his success." J. M.
Gamett, Jr., MSS. " I should hate even the appearance of yielding to the
Great Bashaw (Jefferson), but really I see no reason why I shotdd be at so
great expense of exertion and feeling when no adequate good can be ob-
tained. In the long run, I suppose, the Government and the presses must
break down any individual. I am sensible, too, that I subject my friends to
persecution and proscription, and this consideration hurts me more than
any other. It is a cruel thing to see men of merit overlooked and even
oppressed because of their support of me." Apr, 16, 181 1, J. M. Gamett,
Jr., MSS.
P. 593 io)
In 181 1 Eppes obtained a majority of one over Randolph in Buckingham
County; but, as Randolph obtained a decisive majority over him in the
whole District, the one vote did not make out a case for the application of
Nathaniel Macon's saying that a majority of one is the best majority in the
world. Sawyer, 41. A good story is told of a Maryland Judge who was
elected by a majority of two: "Your majority was very small," remarked
one of his friends. " Small ! " he answered warmly. " If one is a majority
a majority twice as large is a hell of a majority! "
P. 597 (fl)
" I remember Mr. Eppes, it is true," says the Rev. Wm. S. Lacy, ^en
recalling a joint discussion between Eppes and Randolph to which he had
Notes 755
listened when he was lo or ii years old, "and was struck with his appear-
ance as a polished gentleman, who fingered a gold-headed cane — the first that
my childish eyes had ever beheld; but his speech made no impression on
me, or, if it did, has long since been entirely forgotten. Mr. Randolph was
the man I went to see; and I saw him, and heard him too. Much of his
speech I remember to this day, though it has been more than 45 years
ago." Early Recollections of John Randolph, So. Lit. Mess., June, i8S9t
pp, 461-466.
P. 601 (a)
As candidates, Carrington and Bruce were doubtless very much handi-
capped by the fact that they had been political fiends of John Quincy
Adams.
P. 609 (a)
"The franchise of suffrage in Virginia was confined to the freeholders,
thus obviating in the public men the necessity of mingling with and courting
the opinion of the multitude. The system, too, of electioneering was to
address from the hustings the voters; to declare publicly the opinions of
candidates, and the pohcy they proposed supporting. The vote was given
vioa voce. All concurred to make representative and constituent frank and
honest. While this system existed, Virginia ruled the nation. These
means secured the services of the first intellects and the first characters of
her people. The system was a training for debate and public display.
Eloquence became the first requisite to the candidate, and was the most
powerful means of influence and efficiency in the representative." The
Memories of so Years, by W. H. Sparks, 236.
P. 610 (a)
" Giles exhibits in his appearance no marks of greatness. He has a dark
complexion and retreating eyes, black hair and robust form. His dress is
remarkably plain, and in the style of Virginia carelessness. Having broken
his leg a year or two since, he tises a crutch, and perhaps this adds somewhat
to the indifference or doubt with which you contemplate him. But, when
he speaks, your opinion immediately changes; not that he is an orator, for
he has neither action nor grace, nor that he abounds in rhetoric or metaphor,
but a dear, nervous impression, a well-digested and powerful condensation
of language, give to the continual flow of his thoughts an uninterrupted
expression. He holds his subject always before him and surveys it with
untiring eyes. He points his objections with calculated force, and sustains
his position with penetrating and wary argument. He certainly possesses
great natural strength of mind, and, if he reason on false principles, or with
sophistic evasions, he always brings to his subject a weight of thought which
can be shaken or disturbed only by the attack of superior wisdom. I heard
him a day or two since in support of a bill to define treason reported by
himself. Never did I hear such all unhinging and terrible doctrine. He laid
the axe at the root of judicial power, and every stroke might be distinctly
756 Notes
fdt. ... He attacked Chief Justice Marshall with insidious wanotfa.
Among other things, he said: 'I have learned that judicial opinions oo
this subject are like changeable silks, which vary their colors as they are
held up in political sunshine.'" Jos, Story to Sam*l PJ^. Fay, Feb. ij,
1808, Story, by Story, v. i, 15*.
P. 61 1 (a)
In his sketches of the Virginia Convention of 1829-30, Hugh R. Pleasants
besides telling us that Robert Barraud Taylor was remarkaUe for his grace-
ful manner, fine person and finished style of speaking, gives this description
of Benjamin Watkins Leigh : " The man who of all otiiers, with the excep-
tion of John Randolph, attracted the largest share of attention in that
assembly was perhaps Benjamin Watkins Leigh. . . . Mr. Leigh was at
that time in the prime of life, being about 48 years old. His faculties natur-
ally very powerful, improved by continual study, rendered available by
constant exercise at the Bar, have reached their highest point of perfectioo.
An impassive disposition and a sanguine temper which never allowed him to
despair, gave ftill force to an energy which apparently sought out difficul-
ties for the mere love of the excitement produced by overcoming theoL He
was known to the public as a profound lawyer who had no superior at the
Virginia Bar, and from his having been selected to compile the Code of 1819
was believed to be better acquainted with the history of Viiiginia legislation
from the fotmdation of the Colony than any other person in the Convention.
He was a small man, uncommonly well made, very graceful, with a hand
that would have formed a study for Kneller; eyes of tmconmion brilliancy ; a
forehead of striking beauty ; hair as black as the wings of a raven, and glossy
and fine as a lady's; and features which but for a nose somewhat too short
would have been classically handsome. We heard it frequently remarked
at this period of his life that his face bore a striking resemblance to tbe
prints of Shakespeare, and we have ourselves been struck with the likeness.
Mr. Leigh wore a thick-soled shoe on one foot; his leg having been broken
many years before and never having recovered its proper length. This
defect, instead of impairing the ease and grace of his general carriag:e, rather
heightened their effect and contributed to render him what he undoubt-
edly was at that time a man of uncommonly striking appearance." So.
Lit. Mess., V. i/, 148, 14Q.
P. 622 (fl)
These words remind us of an attack of unparallded violence made by
Randolph upon the judge who acted as the Secretary of the Convention held
at Richmond for the purpose of promoting the re-election of John Quincy
Adams: " But what shall we say — not of the Secretary — no, it is T^^^lgB;
to say anything of him/' Randolph declared in one of the notes to a reprint
of his speech on Retrenchment and Reform in the House in 1828. "His
name, associated with that of Chapman Johnson, must be grateful to that
distinguished luminary of the Bar and of Virginia. In our part of tbe
country, we still retain the old-feisluoned prejudice against the three degrees
Notes 757
of borrowing, begging and stealing. We still believe in Charlotte and
Prince Edward that every honest man pays his just debts. If I were to
go to Oakland (where I hope soon to be) and were to steal one of my friend
Wm. R. Johnson's plow horses, value perhaps ;^.oo, I should subject
myself to the penitentiary. But would he not rather be robbed of a work
horse than that any man should buy Medley or Sallie Walker of him for
some thousands of dollars and never pay him? Suum cuique tribuito is
still held in respect with us, and we pay small deference to the opinions of
judges even in the last resort whose creditors cry aloud in vain for justice
against the dispensers of justice — a judge who finally and conclusively
determines between meum and tuum who possesses nothing suum*^
Bouldin, 311.
P. 635 (a)
In his Autobiography^ Martin Van Buren says that the appointment of
Randolph to the Russian Mission was made by Jackson at his instance.
He told Jackson, he informs us, that he had a suggestion to make to him
which would surprise him, and that his astonishment would probably be
much increased when he assured him in advance that the step he was about
to propose was one which he would neither take himself, if he were in his
place, nor recommend to any other President, but that he thought that
Jackson might take ; although not without hazard. As to the reasons for this
conclusion which Van Buren then gave to Jackson, the Autobiography adds:
" They referred to the high estimation in which Mr. Randolph was held by
the masses of the Old Republicans in Virginia, to his identification with that
party from its commencement and his abiding attachment to it growing
out of his active participation in its early contests, to the imposing manner
in which he had discharged his duties as Chairman of the Committee of
Ways and Means during Mr. Jefferson's first term, and finally to his quarrel
with Jefferson, Madison, Monroe and Adams, which would, if he died
without some further opporttmity to exert beneficially the remarkable
capacities, intelligence, sagacity and knowledge of men which he possessed
leave the world in the opinion that he had been an impracticable and
unprofitable man." P. 428.
P. 646 (a)
A little later Van Buren wrote to Thomas Ritchie, the Editor of Tlte
Enquirer, as follows: ''I have no reason to believe that the information
in regard to Mr. Randolph's conduct at St. Petersburg has the slightest
foundation in truth. I believe them, on the contrary, to be sheer mis-
representations. I regret, however, to inform you that Mr. Randolph's
health on his arrival at St. Petersburg was so very bad as to render his
immediate return to the South of France absolutely necessary for the
preservation of his life. This he was authorized to do if the state of his
health required it, and the affairs of the mission would admit of it without
prejudice to the public service. In the exercise of this discretion he left
St. Petersburg. ... I have no doubt that his health is much worse
758 Notes
than it has been at any previous period, and that the severity of the dimate
of St. Petersburg was found to be insupportable by him." Nov. $• ^^30,
Van Buren Papers, Libr, Cong,
P. 648 (a)
Nor is the idea which Bouldin (P. 70) attributes to W. B. Green, that a
part of the Russian salary and outfit was used in the purchase of Randolph's
Bushy Forest estate any better sustained by the facts, for this estate was
purchased long before Randolph went to Russia.
P. 655 {a)
We are told by Martin Van Buren in his Autobiography that his reason
for recommending the Russian Mission as a proper post for Randolph,
under the circumstances, was that our relations with the Government of
Russia were "simple and friendly." P. 41 Q,
Volume II
P. 5 (a)
The attacks made by Randolph on Judge Bouldin and Dr. Crump at
this meeting are especially to be regretted, in view of the fact that Judge
Bouldin had been one of his intimate friends, as Randolph's Diary and
journals show; and Dr. Crump such a fiery partisan of his that when he met
Samuel McDowell Moore, after the scurrilous speech which the latter had
made against the re-election of Randolph to the United States Senate, he
came to blows with him over the matter. "Watkins Leigh," Randolf^
once wrote to Dudley, " is well, much fattened and inspirited by matrimony.
Bouldin, too, is here; a heavy draft from our ooimtry of abilities and
integiity." Jan. 24, 181 4, Letters to a Y. R., 151. Strange to say, it was
when Judge Bouldin was armotmcing the death of Randolph, that he
dropped dead in the middle of a sentence on the floor of the House of Re-
presentative?. Letters and Times of the Tylers, by Tyler, v. i, $07.
P. 5 («
William M. Watkins voted against Randolph in 181 3, and Randolph,
perhaps, never entirely forgot the fact; though their relations, on the whole,
remained those of good friends. On one occasion, Randolph expressed the
conviction that but for Watkins* propensity to drink, he might have been,
and ought to have been, and would have been, the first man in Charlotte
County and Randolph's District, and (as far as Randolph knew) South
of James River. Letter from J, R, to H. A. Watkins, Jan. 24, 1832,
Randolph Will Litigation at Petersburg.
P. 6 (a)
Even were no allowance to be made for Randolph's intensive habits of
speech, what he says about this tavern would hardly deserve the significance
which sectional writers like Henry Adams and James Parton have hastened
to impart to it : " The taverns along the road (from Boston to Washington)
Notes 759
were of a very indifferent description even for that day, when the best city
hostehies were the horror of civilized travellers." Life of Quincy, 72. In
other words, there were few good taverns or inns to be found anywhere in the
United States in Randolph's time; and besides it is only fair to the poorer
Virginia taverns and inns of that period to admit that their sorry quality
was due to some extent to the generous habits of private hospitality which
prevailed in Virginia. " The truth is/* we are told by Dr. James Waddell
Alexander, '''comfort' in Virginia is not at public but private houses; the
case being reversed in Northern cities." 40 Yrs, ' Letters, v. 2, 213.
P. 10 (a)
John Randolph Bryan was told by Mrs. Wyatt Cardwell that, once when
Randolph was tmder her husband's roof at Charlotte Cotirt House at this
time, he declared that he saw devils going up and down a stairway that
landed in his room ; and that she had had his bedstead moved around so that
his back might be ttuned to the stairway; whereupon, after a time, he
looked revived, and told her that she had changed his polarity, and, by doing
so, saved his life. /. R. B. to Mr, Robertson, March 2y, 1878, Bryan MSS.
P. II (a)
" The interest which you express in my well being and the anxiety which
you have manifested for my safety demand every acknowledgment at my
hands. I am not careless of life. I am perhaps more than sufficiently at-
tached to it; but I do not, I cannot, value it so highly as to wish to hold it
with dishonor." /. R, to J. M. GameU, Jidys* 1806, J, M, GameU, Jr.,MSS.
P. 14 M
The observations of Van Buren, in his Autobiography, on Randolph are
deeply tinged by his knowledge of a confidential letter, which he says was
written to Jackson by Randolph in an effort to create discord between
Jackson and Van Buren, and especially by a series of letters, of which this
may have been one, in which. Van Buren says, Randolph labored to
divert Jackson from the purpose of making Van Buren his successor in the
Presidency; and also, to some extent, by the chagrin resulting from the
partisan clamor excited by the departure of Randolph from St. Petersbuiig.
Pp, 12 and 420, But the Autobiography pays more than one striking
tribute to Randolph's intellectual and social endowments. In one place
Van Buren speaks of the "sparkling clearness" of his perceptions; in
another place he tells us that, though Randolph was occasionally melan-
choly and irritable, he was generally lively, and, at times, remarkably
fascinating. Pp.428, 430. And in still another place he more than confirms
what Sawyer has told us about Randolph's conversational characteristics
and powers: "He avoided as a general rule the subjects under discussion
in Congress, apparently glad to drop them and to recreate his mind in fresh
fields. Except when something of tmusual piquancy was afoot, and when
left to himself, Viiiginia, her public men of earlier days, her people and her
ast condition, the character, the life, of his deceased bxother, Richard^
7^0 Notes
with England and the English, were commonly the themes on whidi be
talked better than I ever heard another man talk." P. 451. The general
estimate that Van Buren formed of Randolph's abilities and attainments is
expressed in the Autobiography in these words: "That he was a man of
extraordinary intelligence, wdl educated, well informed on most subjects,
thoroughly grotmded in the history and rationale of the Constitution and of
the Government that was formed under it, eloquent in debate, and wielding a
power of invective superior to that of any man of his day, is tmquestionaMe;
but with all these liberal endowments he lacked a balance wheel to regulate
his passions and to guide his judgment." P. 42/.
P. 15 W
Notwithstanding the coincidence of opinion which existed between
Randolph and Calhoun in some respects, their rdations were never thor-
oughly cordial; though there was a time when Calhoun spared no effort to
conciliate the support of Randolph in his Presidential aspirations. "He
is full of zeal, and almost makes love to Mr. M. (Macon) and another gent
you wot of,'* Randolph wrote to TazewelL "He thinks that he will use ns
for his ends. Quant d moi I shall go along with him very cheerfully un-
til I come to the 'fork of the roads' that leads to my house, when, if he
will go home with me, well! and welcome! If not, I shall go home."
Feb. 28 1 1826 1 L. W. Tazewell, Jr., MSS. In the first instance, Randolph
was kept from forming any intimacy with Calhoun by their wide diver-
gence on the subject of the War of 181 2, and afterwards by the feud
between Calhoim and Andrew Jackson. Evidence is not wanting, however,
that Randolph had an underlying admiration for Calhoun, such as was
indicated by his remark on one occasion that Calhoun was a strong man
armed in mail. Nathan Loughborough MSS.
P. 19 {0)
A member of Mr. Seaton's family, writing from Virginia, early in 1833,
says : " Mr. Randolph has been staying with us, but so feeble that he could
not leave his room. He talks as much and as wonderfully as usual, and is, if
possible, more witty and eccentric than ever. Cousin J. remarked to him
that he was surprised to see him i)ersist in the exploded fashion of wearing
round-toed shoes. *Oh,' replied Mr. Randolph, *I am like Ritchie — I
neither track the one way nor the other. ' " William Winston Seaton, A
Biographical Sketch, IS2.
P. 21 (a)
In a letter to James M. Gamett written before this speech was made,
Randolph, after saying that it was very plain to him that, if "Count Tariff"
carried his project, the slave States would be better off as English colonies
than nominal allies to his Countship , observed : " At this time I would not
give one farthing for all the benefit that Viiginia and North Carolina get
from the General Government. The burthens which the British Parlia-
ment would have imposed upon us were feathers compared with brother
Notes 761
Jonathan's exactions; and a word in your ear — I had just as lief trust the
one as the other; neither having the indispensable qualification of a common
interest and common feeling with us." Roanoke, Nov, i, 1823, J, M. Gar^
neU, Jr., MSS.
P. 28 (a)
Of these resolutions, Martin Van Buren says in his Autobiography: "I
do not believe that it was in the power of any one of our public men then on
the stage of action to set forth the principles thei ein advocated in a manner
80 precise, lucid and statesmanlike as distinguished those resolutions.** 4^4.
P. 29 M
At a meeting held at Buckingham C. H. a week later than this meeting,
that is on Feb. 11, 1833, the suggestion that Randolph should become a
candidate for Congress was ''received with a deafening burst of applause."
Rickm, Enquirer, Feb, 28, 1833,
P. 31 (a)
"At Richmond, he made a long speech, sitting in his chair, praising Wat-
kins Leigh and denouncing Thomas Ritchie and Daniel Webster." AuUh
biog, of Martin Van Buten, 42$,
P. 46 (a)
Henry Adams, following Garland (v, 2, 375), sequadously over the fence,
says: "June 24, 1833 "; (John Randolph, 30$) but this is an error.
P. 46 (6)
In his Reminiscences, which passed into the possession of Dr. Philip
Slaughter, of Culpeper County, Va., Dr. Francis West said: "His face,
after death had closed his penetrative dark-brown eyes, resembled much that
of an old woman."
P. 48 (o)
"I would not die in Washington," Randolph declared, "be eulogized by
men I despise and buried in the Congressional Btuying Ground. The idea
of lying by the side of ! Ah, that adds a new horror to death."
Figures of the Past, by Josiah Quincy, 216,
P. 62 (a)
To all this might be added the declaration of Tristam Burges, of Rhode
Island, in the House: " Genius he certainly has; for he is original and un-
like all other men. If you please, he is eloquent, but, if so, the doquence is
like himself — sui generis,*' Reg, of Deb,, 1830-31^ v, 7 4g4.
P. 63 (o)
"No collection of American speeches, however, has been deemed omd-
Xilete without some of them [Randolph's speeches]; though pronounced, as
762 Notes
to the most part, inaccurate by him; and imperfectly as they have come to
tis the impress of genius is upon them all. " National Portrait GaUmy, v. 4,
Title, Randolph, p. 3.
P. 65 (a)
In a letter to David K. Este, a distinguished lawyer and citizen of
Cincinnati, dated Washington, Feb. 15, 19 16, John McLean, after dwelling
with some pimgency upon the length and discursiveness of Randolph's
speeches in the House at that time, nevertheless concludes: "And yet,
this extraordinary man generally commands attention. He speaks with
great fluency, and his docution is never perhaps surpassed. In invective he
stands certainly unrivalled." Louise E. Bruce MSS.
P. 79 (a)
Evidence of the fact that Randolph lacked the egotism to be intokiant
of criticism conceived in a proper spiiit is also to be found in the patient
manner with which he accepted the harsher part of Gilmer's sketch of
himself as an orator, in which Gilmer even stated that someone who had
lately heard Randolph in the House had compared him to an exhausted
crater. The letter from Randolph to Gilmer which touched upon this
subject is one of the best that he ever wrote. Century Mag,, v. 2Q, ^14.
P. 99 (a)
" How every idle word I utter flies abroad upon the wings of the wind, I
know not." J. R. to Dr, John Brockenbrough, Dec. 21, 1827, Garland, v.
2, 2Q5,
P. loi (a)
" Who is that? " inquired Mr. Randolph [at an election]. " Mr. Beasley,*'
responded someone in the crowd. "Ah, yes," said Mr. Randolph, "the
old one-eyed sleigh-maker, who lives on Sandy Creek." Century Magasine,
V, 2g, 1895-9^* 7^8.
P. 107 (a)
Another version of this story is: "John, when you go down into the
world, if you hear anyone say there is no God, tell him that I say he is a liar."
Nathan Loughborough MSS.
P. 112 (a)
The contrast between the thrifty face of the earth in the Free States and
the conditions bred by the listless and benumbing spirit of slave labor was
very fully presented in a Quakei Memorial laid before the Delaware Legis-
lature in 1826; (Gazetteer of the U. S,, April 16 1826) ; but by no one was the
contrast ever more lucidly and pointedly stated than by Robert Goodloe
Harper, whose life was passed in Vixiginia, South Carolina and Maryland:
"In population, in the general diffusion of wealth and comfort, in public
and private improvement, in the education, manners and mode of life of
Notes 763
the middle and laboring classes, in the face of the country, in roads, bridges
and inns, in schools and churches, in the general advancement of improve-
ment and prosperity, there is no comparison. The change is seen the
instant you cross the line that separates the country where there are slaves
from that where there are none. Whence does this arise? I answer from
this — that in one division of the country the land is cultivated by freemen
for their own benefit, and in the other almost entirely by slaves for the
benefit of their masters." A.of C, 1819-20, r. 2, 1428.
Returning from Virginia to Philadelphia in 1815, Randolph said: "We
are not only centuries behind our Northern neighbors, but at least 40 years
behind ourselves." Letter to James M. Garnett^ Feb. 10, 1815, J. M. Gar-
nett, Jr., MSS, It was only from local pride, political policy or other
similar reasons that he was not always willing to admit that slavery was the
true cause for this fact. Sometimes, when the term "slave-holder" was
used reproachfully in the House, he would refer pointedly to one of his
colleagues as "my fellow-slaveholder"; and, when the London consignees
of his tobacco and slave-factors of his father urged him to liberate his slaves,
he silenced them by saying: "Yes, you buy and set free to the amount of
the money you have received from my father and his estate for these slaves,
and I will set free an equal number. " 30 Years* View by Benton, {1864),
475-
P.117W
After recalling these friendly observations upon the Southern people,
it is gratifying to remember that sensible and fair-minded men were not
lacking at the South either to bear cordial testimony to the merits of New
England. Dr. John Holt Rice visited it in 1822 and he was deeply im-
pressed by the religious zeal, the intellectual enlightenment, the public
spirit and the order and decorum of its inhabitants. Among other agreeable
experiences of a social nature, he was much pleased with "the frank, easy
and graceful" manners of the people of Hartford, and the hospitality of
Col. J. C. T ^k, of Springfield, he said, falling back upon his Virginia
standards, would have done honor to a Southern planter. Memoir of Dr.
John Holt Rice, by Maxwell, 214, et seq.
Writing to Dr. Hall from Charlotte Court House in 1840, Dr. James
Waddell Alexander said of Benjamin Watkins Leigh: "I heard him pro-
noimce a most cordial, discriminating and copious eulogy on the people of
Massachusetts." Forty Yrs.* Familiar Letters; v. i. 314.
The father of the author was a student at Harvard a little later, and, while
a thorough-going Virginia planter in all his social characteristics and poli-
tical convictions, often descanted in the presence of his children until his
death in 1896 upon the admirable virtues of the New England character.
P. 118 (a)
In 1828 Randolph stated in the House that f>5,ooo would build what was
considered a first rate house in his part of the country.
764 Notes
p. 121 (a)
In his letters to Theodore Dudley, Randolph mentions two cases in which
James Bruce, when in Richmond on business, became so absoibingly en-
gaged in the task of loading his wagons, or otherwise, as quite to fbiget
engagements to dine; once with Dr. Brockenbrough and once with a Mr.T.,
another host of Randolph. "But," concludes Randolph in telling the
incidents, " I am growing scandalous. " Nau, 28, 18 is. Letters ioaY. R., 171.
P. 125 (a)
" Once a wife, always a wife, except in very severe cases where the Legis-
lature did sometimes, but rarely, grant a divorce," was declared by Ran-
dolph on one occasion in the House to be the matrimonial rule in Virginia.
A. of C, 1816-17, V. 2, 806,
P. 127 (a)
Of certain of the non-freeholding whites in his District, Randolph is said
to have once declaied in the Senate: "If you take the upper classes of the
blacks, and the lower classes of the whites, the former is the most moral,
virtuous and intelligent man. I mean to confine m3rself to the slaves and
not to the free blacks." NiUs Register ^ Aug. 26, 1828, 4S4. But these
words were part of an unrevised text which was given to the world by the
National Intelligencer and Niles und^r circumstances that strongly suggest
malicious garbling. Nor should it be forgotten that, even if they were
spoken as written, it was no tmcommon thing for the pride of the laige
Southern slaveholder to laud unduly the virtues of his ne^rroes and to
emphasize tmduly the shortcomings of the indigent whites, towards whom
his negioes were as arrogant as they were obsequious to him. "The best
slaves that I have ever seen," Randolph once wrote to James M. Gamett,
"are the Catholic negroes of Maryland, who are like the Irish i>easant
implicitly guided by the priest." Nov., 24, 1832, J. M. GarneU, Jr., MSS.
P. 137 M
Some months after Randolph had been elected in 181 1, he entered in his
Diary these words : ' * Heard Dr. Hoge from Luke XXIV, 42. Very great. "
P. 147 (fl)
The fact that Southside Virginia was, in Randolph's time stiU, in some
respects, a frontier country, is brought to our notice veiy characteristically
when we read a letter in which he told Theodore Dudley that Barksdale
on his way home from Petersburg had been soused in Skinny Creek, and
had nearly perished from cold. Jan, 17, 1822, Letters toa Y. R,, 2J5.
P. 148 (a)
Two exceptions springing from two of the most conspicuous families of
Virginia are mentioned by Anburey and John Randolph, respectively.
P' 385, and Letter from /. R, to Dr. John Brockenbrough, Feb. lOp 1826^
J. C. Grinnan MSS.
Notes 765
p. 158 (fl)
But it is a mistake to think of the climate of Southside Vii^ginia as being
always more or less moderate in winter. In 1829, Randolph wrote to Dr.
Brockenhrotigh from Oakland, the home of his friend Wm. R. Johnson, in
Chesterfield County, Va., that cattle were perishing from the bitter weather.
March 26, 18 2g, Mo. Hist. Soc. " I see through the window the ox that
draws our filing wood," diaiizes Richard N. Venable, on Jan. 12, 1792.
"See how he holds down his head to the weather, and, as he slowly moves
through the snow with silent gravity and humility, joins all nature in
acknowledging that it is winter." Not an ineffective touch for a diarist
who was neither painter nor poet, but simply a vagrant country lawyer.
P. 164 (a)
" Tobacco, situated as we are, is the best crop that we can cultivate. Too
far from market for wheat, — no range for stock — it is that precise point
where the plant can thrive to advantage." July 24^ 1813, J. R. to /. M,
Garnett, J. M. GarneU^ Jr., MSS. Among Randolph's letters to Gamett
is another addressed to him as " Corn-planter, " in which he gives him quite
detailed instructions as to the best methods of tobacco cultiu'e. This letter
is a capital illustration of the firm grasp which Randolph had upon the
practical side of every subject that interested him.
P. 167 (a)
In Randolph's time the wheat was separated from the husk at Roanoke
by the primitive process of treading. Diary of J. R.
P. 173 (a)
The conditions were no better at Yale and Princeton in the fiist half of
the nineteenth century. Describing a Fourth of July dinner at Yale, John
Marsh, who entered that institution in 1800, says: ''The result was lo
Bauhe—the triumph of Bacchus." Temperance Progress of the Century,
by Wooley and Johnson, 46. "We have dozens of yotmg men in and about
Princeton," Dr. James Waddell Alexander wrote to Dr. Hall on March 31,
1840, "who are dnmk every little while, and always on wine." v. i, 2gg,
If anything, dissipation was still more rampant at the Univeisity of Virginia.
Hist, of U, of Va., by Philip A. Bruce, v. 2. 2yg, et uq. Indeed Gaillard
Hunt goes so far as to say that in the early part of the nineteenth century
" Indulgence in strong drink was the curse of every dass and every section."
Life in America 100 Years Ago, 104.
P. 190 (a)
The well-known Presbyterian divine of Scotch origin who was at one
time the President of Davidson College in North Carolina, and afterwards,
from 1866 to 1885, the professor of Moral Philosophy at the present Wash-
ington & Lee University, at Lexington, Va. He was also at one stage of his
career a Moderator of the Southern Presbyterian Church.
766 Notes
p. 197 (a)
The idea has obtained currency that Randolph used this simile in regard
to Henxy Clay, but there is, we believe, no real authority for it.
P. 200 (a)
The real motive, which impelled Randolph to worry Ch^mian Johnson
so viciously in the Virginia Convention of 1829-50, was the fact that John-
son had been the author of the manifesto of the Convention held in Rich-
mond for the purpose of promoting the re-election of John Quincy Adams.
Referring in his speech on Retrenchment and Reform in the House, in 1828,
to the extent to which Adams had condoned the military excesses of Andrew
Jackson, Randolph said: "What shall we say to a gentleman . . . filling
a large space in the eye of his native State, who diould with all the adroit-
ness of a practiced advocate gloss over the acknowledged encroadmtients of
the men in power upon the fair construction of the Constitution, and then
present the appalling picture, glaring and flaming, in his deepest ookrs,
of a bloody military tyrant — a raw-head and bloody-bones — so that we
carmot sleep in our beds; who should conjure up all the images that can
scare children or frighten old women — I mean very old women, Sir — and
who offers this wretched caricature — this vile daub, where brick-dust stands
for blood, like Peter Porcupine's Bloody Buoy, as a reason for his and our
support in Virginia of a man in whom he has no confidence, whom he damns
with faint praise — and who moreover — tell it not in Gath! had zealously and
elaborately (I caimot say ably) justified every one of these very atrocious
and bloody deeds? " Bouldin, 2q6, The quotation used by Randolph in
this speech from some undisclosed source at least suggests one substantial
reason why Chapman Johnson, one of the greatest lawyers ever known to
Virginia, and a powerful figure in the Virginia Convention of 1829-30, never
acquired more prominence in the field of politics. "It is his pride and
honest and honorable pride," the individual quoted by Randolph de-
clared, "which makes him delight to throw himself into minorities, because
he enjoys more self-gratification from manifesting his independence of
popular opinion than he could derive from anything in the gift of the
people." In other words, in the cant phrases of our time, he was "a mug-
wump, " an " intellectual. * '
P. 202 (a)
John Hampden Pleasants was the son of James Pleasants, " the unworthy
son of a worthy sire," Randolph dubbed him; {Nathan Loughborough MSS.)
another way of saying that he was the Whig son of a Democratic father.
It is said that, meeting Randolph on Permsylvania Avenue, in Washington,
Pleasants placed himself directly in front of him, exclaiming loudly as he
did so: "I don't get out of the way of puppies." Stepping instantly
aside, Randolph replied: "I always do, pass on." RecoUections of a
Long Life, by Joseph Packard, no.
Notes 767
p. 203 (a)
Two clever utterances of Randolph have been preserved for us in the
recently published Autobiography of Martin Van Buren. At one time,
Walter Lowrie was the Secretary of the Senate. His reading was certainly
not of the best, and his penmanship was egregious, Van Buren tells us; but
in more important respects he discharged the duties of his office with
eminent success. Of him, Randolph said, that, although he could neither
read nor write, he was the best cUrk that any public body had ever been
favored with. P. 2j8, Once, when Van Buren referred the party disloyalty
of John Holmes, of Maine, to a deadly attack made by John Randolph
upon him, Randolph replied vehemently: "I deny that. I have not
driven him away. He was already a deserter in his heart. If you examine
the body, you will find that the wound is in the back,** P, 206.
P. 208 (a)
If, foi no other rearon, Randolph's speeches can be read with pleasure
because of the way in which language in the forge of his exalted moods of
glowing improvisation becomes as ductile as gold. An illustration is a
paragraph in one of his later speeches: ''An anathema, Sir, has been
issued from the laboratory of the modem Vatican; and a Nuncio has been
dispatched (I believe I must drop the metaphor, or it will drop me). Well,
Sir, an agent then, has been dispatched." Reg, of Debates , 1827-28, v. 4,
Part J, 1040,
P. 209 (a)
Randolph was on such familiar terms with his constituents that he
sometimes singled one of them out from his audience and addressed a ques-
tion to him: "Captain Price," he once called out to one of his venerable
friends from the rostrum, "turn round a moment? How many acres in
that old field? " " Between 100 and 150, 1 presume," was the reply. " Now
tell me Nat. Price," continued Randolph, "here before all your neighbors,
can you enclose that old field with 10 panels of fence? " " No, no indeed,"
shouted the crowd. "And yet," said Randolph, " I am to be turned out of
office because I will not waste your money to do what can no more be done
than Nat. Price can enclose this old field with ten panels of fenoe." Recol-
lections of Wm. S, Lacy^ So. Lit, Mess,, June, i8S9t 461-466.
P. 210 (a)
"I never prepared myself to speak, but on two questions — The Con-
necticut Reserve and the first discussion of the Yazoo claims. * * Letter from
J, R. to Francis W, Gilmer, Century Mag,, {1895-^), v- ^9* 7^3*
P. 212 (a)
This was Jacob Crowninshield, who was secretary of the Navy at the time
while Jefferson was President. It was upon the head of his brother, Ben-
jamin W. Crowninshield, who filled the same post under Madison and
Monroe, that Randolph emptied the vials of his wrath in a note to his speedi
768 Notes
^n Retrenchment and Refonn in 1 828 : " Benjamin W. Crowninshield, the
Master Slender — no the Master Silence of Ministers of State. Shakespeare
himself could go no lower. It is the thorough base of human nature. He
seems to us to have drawn Robert Shallow, Esquire and his cousin. Slender
as the comparative and superlative degree of fatuity; and, when we believe
that he has sounded his lowest note, as if revelling in the exuberance of his
power, he produces Silence, as the Ne plus ultra of inanity and imbecility."
Bouldin, J 16,
P. 213 (a)
Another good example of Randolph's clever way of putting things is
the observations drawn from him in 1809 by the fact that Berent Garden-
ier, a Federalist, had pushed his defense of England further than even he
could approve as a matter of good tactics, if not of principle. " I looked,"
he said, "at the gentleman from New York at that moment, with a sort ci
sensation which we feel in beholding a sprightly child meddling with edge
tools, every moment expecting what actually happened — that he would cot
his fingers." A, of C, 1808-0Q, v, j, 1464.
P. 213 (b)
Randolph's clever reply to his critics is well known: "A caterpillar comes
to a fence; he crawls to the bottom of the ditch and over the fence, some of
his hundred feet always in contact with the subject upon which he moves.
A gallant horseman at a flying leap clears both ditch and fence. "Stop,"
says the caterpillar, "you are too flighty, you want connection and contin-
uity. It took me an hour to get over, you can't be as sure as I am, who
have never quitted the subject, that you have overcome the difficulty and
are fail ly over the fence. " " Thou miserable reptile, ' * replies our fox-hunter,
" if like you, I crawled over the earth slowly and painfully should I ever
catch a fox or be anything more than a wretched caterpillar? " N.B. He
did not say "of the law." Bouldin, jio.
P. 219 (a)
"Yet as regards the interests of my country — of the State of Virginia,"
are among the words employed by Randolph in one of his speeches in the
House. Reg. of Debates, 1827-28; V, 4, Part /, g66,
P. 226 (a)
The other States of the Union undoubtedly owe much to New England
and Virginia, but those two parts of the Union are at least not a little in-
debted to them for the patience with which they have borne their favorable
opinions of themselves. "O, New England," breaks out Noah Webster
in his Diary, after a visit to Virginia, "how superior are thy inhabitants in
morals, literature, civility and industry!" Notes on the Life of Noah
Webster, by E, E. F. Ford; V, /, 146 (note 3), After telling Creed Taylor
that he had seen Lafayette, Samuel Taylor, a prominent citizen of South-
side Virginia, observes: "In his manners there is great simplicity. They
Notes 769
must have been formed by the mamiers of the Virginia gentlemen with
whom he associated in our Revolutionary War." Oci, 31, 1824, Creed
Taylor Papers,
P. 227 (a)
Perhaps, however, the import of this remark was misunderstood by
Quincy; for Randolph long cherished a most earnest desire to make a tour
of New England, which he repeatedly expressed in his correspondence. In
a letter to James M. Gamett from Richmond, he said: "I should like
to 'reside here' a part of the year; but then I should like still better an
excursion to the Eastern States, or a trip to Europe. Both are denied by
my situation." May 14, 18 14^ J. M. Gamett^ Jr,, MSS,
P. 228 (a)
** The history of that period, the accounts given by both sides are replete
with evidence of the efficient part taken by him (Randolph) in the contests
of the day and the sacriiices to which he was exposed from their violence."
Autobiog. of Martin Van Buren, 42g,
P. 229 (a)
"Vamimi has much against my wishes removed Randolph from the
Ways and Means and appointed Campbell of Tennessee. It was improper
as related to the public business, and will give me additional labor."
Gallatin t by Adams, 363.
P. 232 (a)
Perhaps, however, the idea may have originated with Jefferson; for on
Dec. 13, 1803, he wrote to Gallatin: " In order to be able to meet a general
combination of the banks against us in a critical emergency, c6uld we not
make a begiiming towards an independent use of our own money, towards
holding our own bank in all the deposits where it is received, and letting
the Treasurer give his draft or note for payment at any particular place,
which in a well-conducted government ought to have as much credit as any
private draft or bank-note or bill and would give us the same facilities which
we derive from the banks? " Life of Jefferson , by Randall, v. 3, Q3.
P. 240 (a)
"The deil cam' fiddling through the town
And danced awa wi' the exciseman
An ilka wife cried 'Auld Mahoun
I wish you luck o' the prize man'!
n»»
P. 241 (a)
It was not Randolph extolling Virginia, but Quincy extolling Massachu-
setts, who used these words: "Sir, I confess it, the first public love of my
heart is the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; there is my fireside; there
are the tombs of my ancestors.
49
770 Notes
'Low lies the land, yet blest with fruitful stores
Strong are her sons, though rocky are her shores.
And none are! none so lovely to my sight.
Of all the lands which heaven overspreads with light. '
The love of this Union rose out of this attachment to my native soil, and is
rooted in it. I cherish it because it affords the best external hope of her
peace, her prosperity, her independence." A, of C, 1810-11 v. j, 542.
P. 346 (a)
" Northern gentlemen think to govern us by our black slaves; but let me
tell them we intend to govern them by their white slaves." These words
have been imputed to Randolph. Life of Quincy, by Quincy, 66, But,
were they ever really spoken by him?
P. 247 (a)
There is a reference to the author of these reminiscences in Dr. James
Waddell Alexander's Forty Years Familiar Letters to Dr. Hall. * * The Episco-
pal Clergy hereabouts," he says, "are all evangelical and hard working men.
John Clark, who preaches nearest here, cannot I suppose make the circuit
of his preaching places without riding 60 miles. " V. /, 272. This good man
was the son of Col. John Clark, of Mount Lauiel, Halifax Count>% Va.,
one of the wealthiest land owners in that part of Virginia; but he put aside
every lure of wealth, or high family position to give himself up to the sacred
calling which took him over such an extensive territory. On one occasion,
when he was to |)reach at St. Andrew's, in Mecklenburg County, Va., a man
on his way from the other side of the river to hear him said to one of the
Mecklenbuig Alexanders : "I made up my mind to attend and take dinner
with you, for I wished to hear a man preach and talk who made a market
crop of 150,000 pounds of tobacco and five thousand bushels of wheat."
MSS. Memoirs of Mark Alexander, Jr., owned by Mrs. W. Kennedy Boone
of Baltimore, Md.
P. 253 (o)
Yet William M. Watkins, who was one of Randolph's neighbors and
friends, testified in the Randolph Will Litigation with no little truth : " Mr
Randolph was very unforgiving in his temper. It was the principal fault in
his charactei."
P. 256 (a)
Or, as Randolph once said in a letter to Dr. Biockenbrough, "never could
have made a gin horse." Dec. 17, 1828, Garland, v. 2, jis,
P. 260 (a)
In the Randolph Will Litigation, William M. Watkins, who knew Ran-
dolph intimately, testified that he would never have attempted to shut up
Robert Carrington in the manner he did, if he had not been insane.
Notes 771
p. 262 (a)
The following entries taken from Randolph's journal of 1830 (Va. Hist,
Soc.) show that the relations between him and Robert Carrington shortly
before the Russian Mission of Randolph were very neighborly and friendly:
"Feb. 13, 1830. Killed beef, fore qr. to Robt. Carrington."
"May 21, 1830. Robt. C. to dinner."
P. 269 (a)
This loan remained unpaid when the time came for the reconveyance to
Randolph of a tract of land and a ntmiber of slaves, which Randolph had
conveyed to Beverley Tucker about the time of his marriage as a contri-
bution towards the support of the newly- wedded couple; subject to the
promise that they would be so reconveyed. The land was reconveyed, but
Beverley declined to reconvey the slaves on the ground that Judge Coalter
had told him that St. George Tucker intended the slaves to be retained by
Beverley in pajrment of the debt due by Randolph to him. Testimony of
William Leigh, in Coalter's Exor. vs, Randolph's Exor., CWs Office f Cir.
Ct,, Petersburg, Va,
P. 270 (a)
This inference is strengthened by the fact that the slaves which Theo-
dorick Bland gave to Mrs. Eaton, Mrs. Randolph's sister, he secured to her
and her children. Testimony of Mrs. Anna Bland Dudley in the Ran-
dolph Will Litigation.
P. 273 (a)
In a letter to St. George Tucker, Randolph wrote: "Of Morris I will
state an opinion which occurred to me most forcibly whilst he was speaking,
that a fine gentleman has destroyed a great orator." Jan. 75, 1802, Lucas
MSS.
P. 282 (a)
Herman Blennerhassett has something to say of the mistress of Presque
Isle in his journal, under date of Oct. 18, 1807: "I there (at Mrs. Cheval-
ier's) met Mrs. David Randolph, who is a middle-aged lady and very
accomplished; of charming manners and possessing a masctdine mind.
Prom this lady, the near relation of the President, and whose brother is
married to his daughter, I heard more pungent strictures upon Jefferson's
head and heart, because they were better founded, than any I had ever
heard before, and she certainly uttered more treason than my wife ever
dreamed of, for she ridiculed the experiment of a republic in this country,
which the vices and inconstancy of parties and the people had too long
shown to be nothing more than annual series of essays to complete a work
ill-begun, and which appeared to be nearly worn out before it was half-
finished. But 'she always was disgusted with the fairest ideas of a modem
republic, however she might respect those of antiquity.' And as for the
treason 'she cordially hoped whenever Burr or anyone else again attenq>ted
772 Notes
to do anything the Atlantic States would be oomprised in the plan."*
The BlennerhasseU Papers, 458.
P. 292 (a)
" Enclosed is a draft for S300. May it afford every pleasure and profit
I wish it were a cipher more." /. R. to Tudor Randolph, Richmond, Dec
31, 1813, /. C. Grinnan MSS,, Annual Register, 1832, 33, 440.
P. 295 (fl)
Whatever Randolph or Ogden, or anyone else may have thought of Mr.
Morris, there can be no question that her aged husband had no fault to find
with her. Two years after his marriage to her, he wrote to his intimate
friend, John Parish, then at Bath, England : " Perhaps some wind may yet
waft you over the bosom of the Atlantic, and then you shall become ac-
quainted with my wife, and you shall see that fortune — fortune? No ! the
word befits not a sacred theme — ^let me say the bounty of Him who has
been to me unsparingly kind — gilds with a celestial beam the tranquil even-
ing of my day." Some 18 months after the date of Mrs. Morris' reply to
Randolph, he wrote again to Parish as follows: "I lead a quiet, and more
than most of my fellow-mortals, a happy, life. The woman to whom I am
married has much genius, has been well educated, and possesses, with an
affectionate temper, industry and love of order. * ' Life of Gouvetneur Morris,
by Jared Sparks, v. /, 4Q4, 4QS.
P. 298 (a)
In a letter to Joseph C. Cabell, dated Oct. 14, 1831, Mrs. Morris said that,
if she held out until her son was of age, he would do very well, notwithstand-
ing all the fraud and falsehoods of David Ogden (a grandnephew of her
husband) " whose humble tool Jack Randolph became — ^a man who cheated
his own mother." Univ, of Va. Lihr, MSS. We know of no evidence to
warrant such a charge against Ogden, but the testimony of William Leigh
in the Randolph Will Litigation leaves no room for doubt that it was
Ogden who convinced Randolph that Mrs. Morris was leading a licentious
life. Leigh deposed that in 18 15 Randolph had read to him some of the
contents of a letter which he had written to Mr. and Mrs. Morris; that he
asked him why he had written such a singular letter, and that Randolph
said that he had been persuaded to write it by Qgden, and had written it
because Mr. Morris had treated Tudor Randolph with great kindness, and
that he thought that he ought to inform him of the character of his wife.
P. 299 (fl)
Though Mrs. Morris met with as little success in her effort to utilize the
grudge that the Cabell brothers had against Randolph to promote her own
grudge against him as she had experienced in her effort to avail herself of
the quarrel between Randolph and Giles for the same piupose, it cannot
be denied that she had a promising field for her experiment; for the langu-
age employed by Randolph in one of the notes which he afiSxed to a r^xrint
Notes 773
of his speech on Retrenchment and Reform in the House in 1828, about
William H. Cabell was as belittling as any that even his scale of satirical
diminuendo could supply. "We have no faith on the Southside of James
River/* he said, "in the President who called or him (William H. Cabell)
who presided over the Richmond Adams Convention — the successor in form
of Pendleton and Spencer Roane. Lichas wielding the dub of Hercules, a
man who does not endeavor to make up by assiduity and study for the
slendemess of his capacity and his utter want of professional learning . . .
Mr. C. is as strong an instance of this (the fortuitous force of circumstances)
as Shakespeare himself could have adduced. Hardly a second rate lawyer
at the County Court Bar of Amherst and Buckingham, sheer accident
made him Governor of Virginia; happening then to be a member of the
Assembly (when a very obnoxious character was held up for the office) ;
possessing good temper and amiable manners, and most respectable and
powerful connections — the untying of a member's shoe caused him to be
pitched upon to keep out the only candidate. With that exception the
office was going a-begging. Conducting himself most unexceptionally and
inoffensively as Governor, he had a county, and one of the finest too in the
State, named after him (if it had been called after his uncle, Old Colonel
Will Cabell of Union Hill, all would have cried well done! Posterity it is
to be hoped will know no better) and was advanced to the Court of Appeals,
of which he bids fair to be President; a court in which ii he had remained
at the Bar he most probably would never have obtained a brief." Bouldin,
J 1 2. This, of course, is largely caricature, but it can at least be said in
defense of Randolph that the Chairmanship of a political convention was
certainly no place for a judge.
P. 305 M
This was not the only occasion on which the hero of Tippecanoe aroused
Randolph's sense of the ludicrous. "For which of my sins," he wrote to
Theodore Dudley, "it is I know not that I have sustained this long and
heavy persecution (by a manoeuvring lady) more hot and galling than the
dreadful fire which killed nine of General Harrison's mounted rifleman."
Jan. 24, 1814, Letters toa Y. R., 1^0,
P. 313 (a)
Randolph had more than one prejudice to overcome before he could
become truly friendly to Pinkney. When the latter was appointed to
supplement Monroe in his negotiations with the British Court, Randolph
wrote to James M. Gamett: "I hope that Mr. Monroe . . . will have
concluded all matters with the Couit of London before that Federal inter-
loper, P., can arrive to share the honor which does not belong to him."
May II, 1806, /. M. Garnett, Jr,, MSS.
P. 315 M
The imprisonment of Aaron Burr in Richmond at the time of the Burr
rrial elicited this tristful observation from Randolph : "He was last night
774 Notes
lodged in the oommon town jail (we have no State prison except for con-
victs) where I dare say he slept sounder than I did." Richmond, June 2S,
180/9 Letter to Jos, H. Nicholson^ Nicholson MSS., Ltbr. Cong.
P. 322 (a)
Another reference by Bulges to the same subject — so vague as to suggest
a boy who has loaded a gun but is not quite certain enough of hirngM^if to let
it off — is supposed by his enthusiastic biographer to have had such a cowing
effect upon Randolph that he inunediately left the House and never raised
his voice in it again. "Sir, Divine Providence takes care of his own Uni-
verse. Moral monsters cannot propagate . . . Impotent of everything
but malevolence of purpose, they can no otherwise multiply miseries than
by blaspheming all that is pure and prosperous and happy. Could demon
propagate demon, the Universe might become a Pandemonium; but I re-
joice that the Father of Lies can never become the Father of Liars. One
adversary of God and man is enough for one Universe. Too much! Oh!
how much for one nation ! " Memoir of Tristam Surges, by Henry L. Bowen
los-
P. 331 M
There is much additional testimony in regard to the extent to which
Randolph retained his brilliant faculties even when demented. " He spoke
as clearly and brilliantly as I have ever heard him," Wm. M. Watldns testi-
fied in the Randolph Will Litigation as to the conversation of Randolph in
the early part of 1832. According to William B. Banks, of Halifax Co.,
Va., after Randolph's return from Russia, he was "splendidly mad."
George P. Coleman, MSS,
P. 332 (a)
A part of the testimony, rendered by General Winfield Scott in the
Randolph Will Litigation, has an important bearing on this point. Once,
he says, Randolph in his desire to let him realize just how he would have
answered an antagonist in the House (Darnel Sheffey), if he had had the full
chance to do so, asked him to sit as Speaker to hear his reply. Then for
thirty minutes or moie Randolph poured forth as rich a volume of indignant
and yet connected eloquence as the General had ever heard from his lips,
but soon mistook him in his vehemence for his antagonist in the debate,
with the result that the General had some difficulty before leaving him for
the night to disabuse his mind of its impression.
P. 344 (a)
The good will of Randolph for the people of Amelia County was not so
far won by the kindness, of which he was the recipient in that County, that
he could not say of them in a letter to Theodore Dudley: "Those people
dislike business, love amusement, and the issue need not be foretold."
Jan. 17, 1822, Letters to a Y, R,, 236.
Notes 775
p. 344 (W
Writing to James M. Gamett from Roanoke, on Nov. i, 1823, Randolph
said : "I am embosomed in woods — oaks, hickories, ehns, pines, black gums,
red buds, &c., grapevine, sweet briars, green briars, &c., and nothing can be
more charming than their present appearance. One thriving yotmg oak
'occludes* (as St. Thomas of Cant»ngbury would say) the only window of
my bed chamber whose shutters are imclosed at night, and the effect is so
grateful that when I sleep abroad, on awaking in the morning, I feel as if
I had come out of darkness to a strong artilBdal light. " James M, GarneU,
Jr., MSS.
P. 352 (a)
"After dinner I sit over my fruit and wine without the company even of
a solitary fly. These, although I can't manage their Hessian namesakes, I
have nearly extirpated here." /. R. to James M. Garnett, Roanoke, Sept.
10, 1823, J. M. Garnett, Jr., MSS.
P. 353 W
The missing element in the Roanoke larder was an abundance of fish.
At that time, of course, fish could not be transported for any great distance,
and, apparently, shad and other sea fish were unable to run up the Roanoke
higher than a certain plantation just above Weldon, where they were caught
in vast numbers; but this was many miles below Roanoke. Reminiscences
of John Randolph Bryan, Bryan MSS. The Staunton itself is usually
very muddy and is stocked mainly with the fish known locally as the "Red-
eye," the "River Jack" and the "Sorrel Horse." "This climate," Ran-
dolph once wrote to James M. Gamett, "has avenged the wrongs of my red
ancestors as the gullies, old fields and rivers of mud (fishless) have that
of the African slave trade. God is just! Crime insures punishment!"
March 4, 1826, J. M. Garnett, Jr., MSS. Fish, usually a single one, and
once a "Red-eye" a foot long, are mentioned occasionally in Randolph's
journals. A gift of a fish, which a man whom he hardly knew had sent him
from a point 8 miles away, was received by him gratefully enough to be
noted in one of his letters to Dr. Brockenbrough. Roanoke, May 75, 182^,
Garland, v. 2, 2gi.
P. 354 (o)
"Immediately after the adjournment (of Congress)," Randolph once
wrote to Dr. Brockenbrough, " I shall travel — perhaps take a sea voyage,
not to get rid of duns (although the wolf will be at my door in the shape
of the man I bought that land of) but to take the only chance of prolonging
a life that I trust is now not altogether useless." Feb. 23, 1820, Garland,
V. 2, 132.
P. 357 (a)
Buck Spring, Macon's home in North Carolina, presented very much the
same glaring incongruity as Roanoke. Randolph's idea of living in two
776 Notes
houses was improved upon to such an extent that a group of no less than a
half dozen log structures oonstituted the domestic establishment of Macon;
oneof which served as a kitchen, another as a dining room; and so on; but,
crude as these buildings were, he is said to have possessed a large quantity
of old wine, silver, cut glass and fine linen; and a stud of thozx>ughbreds at
which even Randolph could hardly have cavilled. Life of Jefferson^ by
Randall, v. 2, 66$, {note /}. It may well be doubted whether a more
virtuous man than Macon ever held public oflSce in the history of the United
States, and to his goodness and tenderness of heart, not unlike that of
Abraham Lincoln, together with his native wisdom and quaint felicity of
speech, was due the fact that his hold upon the confidence and affection of
the people of North Carolina was so tenacious. That such a man should
have cherished a love so profound for Randolph is proof enough that,
whatever may have been the rind of Randolph's character, its core was
essentially sound. To James M. Gamett Randolph once wrote of Macon:
"His inntmierable, nameless little attentions and kindnesses, springing
directly from the heart, shews that age has no power in chilling his bene-
volent feelings." Dec, j/, 1822, J. M. GarneU, Jr., MSS. And Thomas
H. Benton testified in the Randolph Will Litigation that, when Randolph's
mind was unhinged, the fact that Macon observed it was manifest only "in
an increased kindness and soothing tenderness."
P. 357 W
It is manifest that the total value of Randolph's estate depends not a
little on the average figure that is employed in multiplying the whole num-
ber of his slaves. The prevailing prices for negroes in Southside Vii^ginia in
1828 was, say $250.00 for a young woman, and $300.00 to $400.00 for a
young man. James Btuce to M. Br ante, Oct, ij, 1828, Malcolm G. Bruce
MSS. But in 1828 Randolph declared in the House that, when cotton had
sold at $30.00 per hundred pounds, he had known a common field hand to
bring as much as $1200.00. Reg, of Debates, 1827-28, v. 4 Part 1, ii2g
In one of his answers in the Randolph Will Litigation Beverley Tucker re
f erred to Randolph's estate as a "vast" one.
P. 359 (<»)
" Rain all around us," " Fine rain last night, thanks be to God! " are two
entries in his journals that reveal the suspense of a severe drought, and the
devout joy awakened by its cessation.
P. 377 W
Randolph was intimate with more than one of the Mortons of Charlotte
and Prince Edward Counties, and he is said to have entertained a peculiar
respect for Major James Morton, of " Willington," Prince Edward County.
The Major's sobriquet in the Revolutionary Army was "Solid Colmnn" —
a name which had its origin in his stocky build. He was well known to
Lafayette during the American Revolution, and, when he advanced to pay
his respects to the latter at a reception given to the latter at RidmaoofJU
Notes 777
during one of his post-Revolutionary visits to the United States, Lafayette
at once recognized him, and, stepping forward, held out both hands to him
cordially, and exclaimed: "Vy old solved coluume. I am 'appy to see
you." Marian Harland^s Autobiography, 17.
P. 379 (o)
"You who have a kindly heart," is the casual tribute paid on one occa-
sion by Joseph Bryan to the personal character of Raiidolph. July 16,
i8og, Bryan MSS.
P. 381 (a)
Although a devoted equestrian, I fell far short of him who was as much
at home on horseback as an Arab. AtUobiog, of Martin Van Buren, 42^.
P. 381 (W
To the same effect is the testimony of Nathan Loughborough in the
Randolph Will Litigation. "On the morning of the day on which he
fought with Mr. Clay, I saw him at his lodgings. He then appeared to be
very cheerful, not at all excited, made some remarks on 'the paper system'
and its probable fate, talked of blooded horses, and upon no other subject
that I now recollect."
P. 384 M
James Schouler, and his History of the United States under the Con-
stitution, are to be credited in their attempt to delineate the character of
Randolph with an elaborate conceit worthy of the age of Cowley and
Donne: "In a few vivid passages his genius gleamed mischievously out
like a Lucifer in armor passing some sunny aperture in his dark and
fathomless descent." v. 3, 368, While duplicity was entirely foreign to
Randolph's nature, his intense pride of character did offer at times an
"inflexible resistance to everything like attempts to read his motives or
thoughts." Autohiog, of Martin Van Buren^ 426, In Van Buren's case,
this occasional inscrutability was perhaps due in part to Randolph's
knowledge of Van Buren's own peculiarities. He is said to have once told
the latter that he could look at nothing, but only over or under or around it.
Nathan Loughborough MSS.
P. 395 (o)
Randolph was not easily outmatched even by a termagant quean. " My
servants here," he wrote on one occasion to Dr. Brockenbrough, "have been
corrupted by dealing with a very bad woman that keeps an ordinary near
me. Twenty odd years ago I saw her, then about 16, come into Charlotte
Court to choose a very handsome young fellow of two and twenty for her
guardian, whom she married that night. She was then as beautiful a
creature as ever I saw (some remains yet survive). They reminded me of
Annette and Lubin. But alas ! Lubin became a whiskey sot, and Annette
a double you. Her daughters are following the same vocation, and her
778 Notes
house is a public nuisance. I have been obliged to go there and lecture her.
At first she was fierce, but I reminded her of the time when she chose her
guardian, extolled her beauty, told her that I could not make war upon a
woman, and that with a widow — ^that ii she wanted anything she might
command much more from me as a gentleman by a request than she could
make by trafficking with my slaves. She burst into tears, promised to do so
no more and that I might, in case of a repetition of her offence, *do wiA
her as I pleased.* Her tears disarmed me and I withdrew my threat d
depriving her of her license, etc., etc. Voila un toman,** Roanoke, May
JO, 1828, Garland, v. 2, jo8. On one occasion Randolph is said to have
applied his fingers to his nose when accosted by the scurrilous Mrs. Anna
Royall. Bouldin, 77. But the reader should not pass judgment upon this
contumelious gesture until he has read Mrs. Royall's " Black Book. "
P. 403 W
** Mrs. Fitzhugh too is one of my old and greatly admired female friends.
So is 'my good friend Mrs. H.' You never mention another old friend of
mine, Mrs. Carrington. Should you see her make my best respects and
regards." To EUm. T. Coalter, Feb, 19, 1823, Bryan MSS.
P. 404 (a)
Another woman who was very much admired by Randolph was Xirs.
Rush of Philadelphia : ' ' She is indeed a fine woman, * ' he wrote to Theodore
Dudley. " One for whom I have felt a true regard tmmixed with the foible
of another passion. Fortunately, or unfortunately for me, when I knew her
*I bore a channed heart. * " July 21, 181 1, Letters tea Y. R., gj.
P. 409 (a)
** I never in all my professional practice had a more agreeable sitter. He
sat to me for three different pictures." Chester Harding, My Egotistic
graphy, 145.
P. 412 (o)
In the course of his remarkable speech in the Virginia Convention of
1829-30, on the basis of representation, Mr. Morris said that, upon the
principle of the Western members, the Thirteen Colonies, if they had been
allowed representation by England, woidd not have been accorded more
than twenty or twenty-five representatives in the British Parliament; thirty
perhaps. "Here," observes the official reporter of the Debates of the
Convention (P. 11$) *'a shrill and very peculiar voice was heard to say:
'Less than the county of Wilts. ' '*
P. 415 (a)
"My passion for tobacco (like that for play 15 years ago)," Randolph
wrote on one occasion to James M. Gamett, "has entirely deserted me."
Dec, 2$, iSoQy J. M. GarneU, Jr,, MSS, In an earUer letter to Tazewell, in
which he made an incidental reference to his old bHe-nair, Maury, he dis-
Notes 779
doses the fact that he was a snuff-taker too. ** Not that I have anything
of that little wasp's passion for castigation," he said, "but I go to sleep
after dinner maugre my snuff box." June 8, 1804, L. W. Tagewell, Jr,,
MSS.
P. 423 M
Describing the occasion, Randolph said: ''We had no riot, no fuss,
no dancing, no great supper, and, what is more uncommon, no bawdry.
We retired to cards soon after the ceremony was over; refreshments, the
very best of their kind, both light and substantial, were on an adjacent
sideboard, and occasionally handed round, just as you chose them; and we
were all as easy as if we had been in my apartments at Crawford's. The
Governor, who did not play, occasionally went out of the room, and finally
made his escape without being missed. You are not mistaken in Macon.
In a full suit of broadcloth, striped silk stockings and dress shoes, his
countenance beaming with benevolence, and his voice softened by the
occasion, he went through his part with an elevation of manner that
delighted me. Whilst we were dressing, 'they have both been twice
married' said he, and, if they have not yet found out for what it was in-
stituted, I shall not tell them. They are not tyros." /. R. to James M,
GarneU, Sept, 28, 1810, /. M, Garnett, Jr., MSS.
P. 424 (o)
" We have been loimging d la Virginienne at the house of a friend about a
day and a half's ride." /. R, to Francis Scott Key, Oct. 25, 1816, Garland,
V. 2, 89.
P. 428 (o)
One of his last thrusts at "Yankees" was given on his death bed. He
descanted upon the honesty of his servant John; said that he was then in
possession of all the money that he had with him, and concluded by con-
trasting him with the "Yankee," who, if entrusted with a similar simi,
would soon be off to Canada with it. Reminiscences of Dr. Francis West,
J. C. Grinnan MSS.
P. 430 (a)
An observation made by Madame de Neuville created a profound
impression upon Randolph's mind. "Madame de Neuville," he said in a
letter to Elizabeth T. Coalter, "who feeds many of the poor here has a
maxim that ought to be written in letters of gold; that, when the rich are
sick, they ought to be starved, but, when the poor are sick, they ought to be
well fed, and 'nourished with wine,' etc." Feb. 5, 1822, Bryan MSS.
P. 434 (o)
The author has endeavored by correspondence and otherwise to trace
all the letters written by Randolph to the various persons to whom he was
in the habit of writing letters. Those written by him to Benjamin Watkins
78o Notes
Ldfl^ and Mark Alexander were deliberately destrosred. In a letter to
Fhmcis N. Watkins, dated June $, 1856, (Univ. of Va. Libr.) Judge WiDsam
Leigh stated that in sevcaral conversations Randolph requested him to
destroy after his death all letters that he had received, ezc^t such as had
been written by politicians; and that, as soon as he had qualified as executor,
he destroyed them all, without exception. We entertain a great respect for
the memory of Judge Leigh, but this letter reminds us of the well-lmown
remark of Henry W. Grady, of Georgia, in his speech before the New
England Club of New York, on Dec. 21, 1886, that General Sherman was
considered an able man in his parts, though some people thought that he
was a kind of careless man about fire. Life of Henry W, Grady, by Harris,
87. Among the letters destroyed by Judge Leigh, were doubtless Ran-
dolph's own letters to Joseph Bryan, whidi we know were returned to
Randolph by Bryan's widow, {Bryan MSS,) and Randolph's letters to Stan*
ford. /. R, to James if. GameU, Apr, 23, 1816, J. M. GameU, Jr., MSS.
P. 450 W
One of the severest shocks ever given to Randolph's &stidious habits ol
pronunciation was the barbarous manner in which Ritchie, the editor of the
Richmond Enquirer, pronounced the name of the Dutch Minister durii^
Andrew Jackson's time: "Your friend the Baron Huygens," he once
wrote to Van Buren, ** (whom Ritchie, etc. etc., persist in calling lluggins'
to my great axmoyance) to whom I beg to be most respectfully presented,
can give 3rou all the information I want." Roanoke, June i, i8$o, Fss
Buren Papers.
P. 458 w
Another child, in whom he took the warmest interest, was a son of his
friend, Dr. Robinson, to whom he referred in his letters to Theodore Dudley
as his "Uttle friend Will "; or his "Uttle friend William." Letters toaY.R.,
Feb. 28, and March 18, 1808, 47 and 5/.
P. 472 (a)
** Nonum prematur in annum, is the maxim of the great Roman critic.
I do not see therefore why you should not keep your compositions at least
half as many days instead of sending me what you have just scribbled off in
a huny, without time perhaps to read it over once." Letter to Theodore
Dudley, March 30, 1808, Letters toaY.R., 58.
P. 485 (0)
" I never did 'distrust your affection for me' until the summer before last.
The surprise and anguish which then overwhelmed me you witnessed. I
would not recall such recollections (it is the office of friendship to bury
them in oblivion) but to put you in possession of the clew to my feelings
and conduct. I viewed you as one ready and willing from the impulse of
your own pride to repay what you considered a debt of gratitude whilst you
held the creditor in aversion and contempt that you could not at all times
Notes 781
restrain yourself from expressing by signs and even by words." /. R.
Theodore Dudley, Dec, ig, i8ig, LeUers to a Y, R,, 206,
P. 493 (a)
In Southside Viiginia, during Randolph's time, it was the usage to make
deceased persons the subjects of funeral sermons, and in some instances
quite a time after they had been interred. Among such instances were the
funeral sermons preached in regard to Tudor Randolph and Dr. Bathurst
Randolph.
P. 495 M
One of the most touching things about the relations of Randolph to St.
George was his eagerness to promote any evidence of intellectual aptitude
that he saw in him, such as a turn for drawing or wood carving. "St.
George," he wrote exultingly to Theodore Dudley on one occasion, "has
turned an ivory chessman (a castle) superior to the European model."
Roanoke, Aug. 12, 181 1, Letters to a Y, R., g8.
P. 495 («
Apparently Randolph hoped at one time that either St. Geoige or Tudor
and Sally, the sister of Theodore Dudley, would make a match of it. " Poor
Sally!" he said in one of his letters to Theodore, "I had flattered myself
that she would return to Virginia and make one of our family." Feb. 18,
18 1 6, Letters to a Y. R., 174.
P. 501 (a)
Skates, fish-hooks, and Christmas boxes, are among the many things
which we find Randolph, from time to time, purchasing for the youthful
charges who happened to be under his roof exactly as if they were his sons.
P. 506 (a)
Another indication of the keen interest felt by Randolph in young persons
of both sexes is found in his references to a sister of Theodore Dudley, of
whom he sometimes speaks as ' ' my favorite Fanny. * * Dec. 27, 1814, Letters
to a Y. R., 170.
P. 514 («)
It is said that on the night before the duel between Randolph and Gay,
Randolph came into the hotel room at Washington in which his brother,
Henry, who did not know that the duel was impending, was, and leaning
over him, as he lay in bed, said: "God bless you Hal." Bishop Beverley
D. Tucker MSS.
P. 520 (o)
In one of his letters to Theodore Dudley, Randolph said of Polly : " She
is a good creature as ever breathed, knows nothing of megrims, hartshorn.
782 Notes
spirits of lavender, laudanum, nor fiis.** Roanoke, Nov, 30, 181a, LeUers
toaY, R,, 80.
P. 581 (a)
"That old sinner of 'Marland'", he termed Samuel Smith, in a letter to
Dr. John Brockenbiough of Jan. 4, 1822. Garland v. 2, isy,
P. 582 (a)
In a letter to William Henry Harrison, Gallatin once took occasion to
deny that he had ever said that Randolph was under the British influence.
"No man," he declared, "is more free of extraneous influence of any
kind than he is." Sept, 27, i8og, Writings of GaUaiin, ed, by Henry
Adams, v, i, 463,
P. 587 (a)
" Poor N. is destroyed body and mind by paralysis," Rando^ wrote to
Theodore Dudley from Baltimore. Feb, 18, 1816, Letters io a Y. R,, 174,
P. 590 (a)
In a letter to James M. Gamett, dated April 14, 18 12, Randolph used the
words "A quondam friend of mine in Maryland." He doubtless meant
Nicholson. /. Af. Gamett, Jr., MSS.
P. 591 (a)
In a letter, dated Feb. 5, 1807, Randolph, after saying that the infernal
climate of Washington would sooner or later be the death of half of them — a
result that might be of great public advantage, he added, if the selection of
victims were judiciously made — prayed God that he would at least take
Nicholson's headpiece into his Holy Keeping. Nicholson MSS, Libr. Cong,
P. 592 (a)
In their letters to each other, Randolph and Gamett, who was an excel-
lent letter writer, had nicknames for certain individuals. Jefferson was,
"St. Thomas of Cantmgbury "; John Taylor of Caroline, " Trismcgistus";
Richard Stanford of North Carolina, "Win Jenkins"; and John Nicholas,
of Richmond, "Falconi."
P. 594 («)
When Macon was about to die, true to the simplicity of character —
"white simplicity" Keats calls it — which is so charming to every truly
imsophisticated human being when blended with real moral and mental
superiority, he not only called for the bill of his physician and paid it, but
paid his undertaker for his prospective services too. Nathantel Macon,
by Wm. E. Dodd, 398,
P. 601 (a)
In a letter to Littleton Waller Tazewell, John Randolph said that Lang-
don was the only man from " the universal Yankee nation " that he had ever
Notes 783
found true as steel, under all circumstances. Feb, 22^ 1826, LiUleUm
Waller Tatewelh Jr,, MSS.
P. 612 (a)
For still other New England men Randolph entertained a great admir-
ation. One was Roger Sherman, "who had scarcely his superior in saga-
city," he once said. Reg, of Deb., 1827-28, v. 4, Part /, Q48. Another
was one of his own contemporaries, James Burrill. The day before the
death of Burrill, Randolph wrote to Francis W. Gilmer: "Mr. Burrill, of
the Senate (from Rhode Island), lies very ill, and I fear will make the third
loss in Congress this winter. He is a very able and amiable man. Mr.
King and Mr. Pinkney are the only members of the Senate that may be
considered equal (perhaps superior) to him." Dec, 24, 1820, Bryan MSS,
P. 621 (a)
Notwithstanding the miff disclosed by the letter from Randolph to Key,
the friendship between Lloyd and Randolph remained unbroken. In
Randolph's letters are occasional references to Lloyd's "jollifications," as
Randolph once termed them; and on one occasion James M. Gamett, who
also knew Lloyd well, wrote to Randolph that he longed for something with
which to dissipate his "htrnior," as much as ever a breeding lady, or their
friend Lloyd, did for their peppermint and magnesia. July 21, 1810, J, M,
Carnett, Jr., MSS, Lloyd's habits, however, were no more convivial than
became the master of Wye, and a link in a long chain of high-bred and hospi-
table gentleman. At one time or another, he was Governor of Maryland,
a member of the House of Representatives and a member of the United
. States Senate, and he was highly respected in both public and private life.
P. 623 (fl)
"I can hardly figure to myself the ideal of a Republican statesman more
perfect and complete than he (John Taylor of Caroline) was in reality —
plain and solid, a wise counsellor, a ready and vigorous debater, acute and
comprehensive, ripe in all historical and political knowledge, innately
Republican, modest, courteous, benevolent, hospitable, a skilful practical
farmer giving his time to his farm and his books when not called by an
emergency to the public service, and returning to his books and his farm
when the emergency was over. His whole character was announced in
his looks and deportment and in his imiform (Senatorial) dress — the coat,
waistcoat and pantaloons of the same 'London brown', and in the cut of a
former fashion — beaver hat with ample brim — fine white linen — and a gold-
headed cane, carried not for show but for use and support when walking
and bending tmder the heaviness of years." 30 Years View, by Benton
(1864), 45-
P. 630 (fl)
Gilmer fully shared Randolph's aversion to the institution of slavery.
" I begin to be impatient to see Virginia once more," he wrote to William
784 Notes
Wirt from England, "It is more like England than any other part of the
United States — slavery non obstante. Remove that stain, blacker than the
Ethiopian's skin, and annihilate our political schemers, and it would be
the fairest realm on which the sun ever shone." July, 16, 1824, Trends
EngUsh CuUure tn Vtrgima, 68.
P. 633 (fl)
Two very handsome tributes to Randolph were brought out by the
testimony in the Randolph Will Litigation. "He was an accomplished
gentleman/' John Taliaferro testified. " In fine," declared Nathan Lough-
borough, "I believe Mr. Randolph while living (it is still my belieO to have
been among the most wise, honest and sagacious of his species."
P. 637 (a)
Few things have been circulated more widely in Randolph's District than
words of commendation written by him about one of his neighbors. A
letter from his pen which was long, if it is not still preserved, was one which
he gave to his neighbor Elisha E. Hundley introducing him to John
Rowan, of Kentucky. "Mr. Hundley," the letter said, "is a plain, in-
dustrious quiet man, who minds his own afiFairs and does not meddle with
other people's business." Boiddin, 230,
P. 640 (a)
"His (Littleton Waller Tazewell's) perceptions are as intuitive and as
strong as those of Mr. Marshall. He has as much intrepidity of intellect
as Mr. Pinkney, and great boldness, but no insolence; no exultation of
manner. He wants only ambition to make him rival, nay, perhaps, even to
surpass, the accomplished champion of the Federal Bar." Sketches by
Francis W. Gilmer, j6. Indeed Gilmer said in the same sketch, that
Tazewell was endowed with the best and most various gifts that he had
ever known to concur in any individual.
P. 670 (a)
Randolph once said sarcastically in the House that the excellence of the
postal establishment in his District was such that a broad-wheeled wagon,
ladened with two heavy hogsheads of tobacco, would go from his house
to Richmond in a day and a half less time than the mail did; which was
besides only weekly. A. of C, 1816-17 ^ v. 2, 466. Some nine or ten years
later, he declared in the House that he could not get a reply to Washington
from Halifax Coimty, in Southside Vii^inia, under three weeks, even if
there were no miscarriage of the mail; but that the Postmaster General
had promised to establish a bi-weekly mail which would brin^ a reply in
10 days.
P. 676 (a)
In 1804 he had five horses in training for the race track. Letter to Jos.
H. Nicholson, Aug. 27, 1804, Nicholson MSS., Libr. Cong, And in his
Notes 785
Autobiography, Van Buren tells us that Randolph was the owner at the time
of his death of more than 100 horses altogether. 42 j.
P. 676 (b)
"Miss W. (his mare Wildfire) and Mr. R. are both equally ignorant who
'King Caucus' is/' he once wrote to Mai tin Van Buren. " If a horse at all
points his company would be peculiarly acceptable to the lady at this
juncture, who is pining for the loss of her late companion." Van Buren
Papers, Libr. Cong.
P. 680 (a)
Describing the departure of Randolph, on one occasion, from Washing-
ton with a young spaniel that some friend had doubtless given to him,
Nathaniel Macon wrote to Weldon N. Edwards: "He carried with him a
puppy of the same kind, scarcely lax^ge enough to follow his chair in which
he went." May 2, 1828, N. C, HisU Soc, Papers,
P. 682 (a)
In a characteristic message to Theodore Dudley, Randolph once wrote:
"Beverley and Polly desire their best regards to you, so do Carlo, Echo and
Dido, and also little Dash, who arrived last night in the wagon. " Roanoke,
Oct. 29, 1810, Letters toaY. R,, 7J.
P. 687 (a)
"Bodily motion seems to be some relief to mental uneasiness, and I was
delighted yesterday morning to hear that the snipes are come." J. R. to
Francis Scott Key, Mar, 2, 181Q, Garland, v. 2, g6,
P. 688 (a)
On one occasion, when shooting, he met with an accident which, we
cannot but be surprised, should not have happened oftener before the
invention of the breech-loading gun. After telling his friend Gamett how
one of his toes had been completely crushed by the newly-shod hoof of a
horse, he said: "Although I could bear neither boot nor shoe on the
wounded foot, I soon made a shift to go a-shooting on horseback. On
reloading my piece, the powder took fire, as I poured it into the barrel, and,
communicating to the flask, which had been previously filled, it blew up
with a horrible explosion. Bnmette, whose ears were smartly singed,
started and set off at a pretty brisk gate. Although I lost neither my seat
nor my gun, yet, my right hand being wholly useless, I was compelled to
drop the latter in order to seize the reins which I had no other means of
shortening but by the assistance of my teeth." Roanoke, Nov. 6, 18 10,
J, M. Gamett, Jr., MSS, The explosion was due to a piece of ignited
wadding which had stuck to the barrel when it had been last discharged.
The sore foot, Randolph thought, probably saved his life; for it was too sore
to bear the butt of his gim when he was reloading and consequently, when
the accident occurred, he had elevated the muzzle of his gun as high as his
VOL. II — so
786 Notes
right arm could reach. The sides of the flask were picked up more than lOO
yards apart and its top was never found at all.
P. 690 (a)
"I should rather have Essex than any nurse or attendant I ever saw."
Jan, 27, 1817, LeUers toaY, R., 184,
P. 690 {h)
"A little pet negro, about three years old, whom you never saw, and
whom a red flannel frodk. has made as happy as Queen Dolly at her Levee."
/. R. to James M, GameU^ Dec, ji, 1813, J. Af. GarneU, Jr., MSS.
P. 690 (c)
" The wants of some 200 wretches, whom I never think of without per-
plexity and dismay, diversify my time." J, R, to James M, CameU, Dec,
22, 1818, J. M, Garnett, Jr„ MSS.
P. 696 (a)
The intimate contact between master and slave in Virginia is exemplified
in an effective manner in one of the letters from Randolph to James M.
Gamett: *'I must rouse Jupiter," he said, "who is sleeping: very soundly
on a comfortable bed by the fire, and prepare for a short journey to Sterett
Ridgely's." Georgetown, Feb. 11, 18 16, J. M, GameU, Jr., MSS.
P. 700 (fl)
After Randolph returned from Russia John took advantage of his mas-
ter's loss of reason, and reverted to his former bad habits, according to the
testimony of Wyatt Cardwell in the Randolph Will Litigation. He not
only got drunk whenever he had a chance, but purloined some money that
belonged to his master and gambled with it. This witness also testified
that Essex too was in the habit of drinking. John was No. 285 in the list
of negroes emancipated by Randolph which was registered at Charlotte C.
H., and his wife Betsey No. 286. Both are described in the list as being "of
black complexion." John's age is given as 63 yrs., and his height as 5 feet
and 2 inches.
INDEX
Adams, Charles Francis, V. I, 14
Note A, 200
Adams, Henry, V. I. 5, 14 Note A,
46, 48, 51, 62, 80, 83, 211 Note B,
255» 264, 270, 277, 280, 281 Note
A, 294 Note A, 303, 308, 315,
318, 3i9f 348, 358 Note A. 361,
635» 638, 640, 648, 655, 661, V.
Il, 46 Note A, 59, 61, 146,
148, 240, 456,491,650
Adams, John, V. I, 157, 160, 171,
173. 318, 359» 399. 507. 533. V.
II, 62, 227, 228
Adams, John Quincy, V. I, 167
Note A, 200, 207, 211, 249, 253,
306, 308, 309, 338, 348, 501,
504. 507. 508, 515, 527, 533, 543,
544, 557. 653. V. II, 125, 216, 237,
303, 542, 624
Adams, Rev. Nehemiah, V. II,
132
Adams, Samuel, V. I, 178, 508
Aggy, Manny, V. II, 458, 529,
699
Alexander, Dr. Archibald, V. I,
144, 145, 148, V. II, 104, 133,
137, 138, 142. 143, 144, 145, I49»
,151, 153
Alexander, James Waddell, V. I,
582, 587, 599. V. II, 58. 68, 98,
102, 108, no, 113, 117 Note A,
119, 121, 122, 123, 129, 130, 131,
132. 133. 134. 135. 136, 140. 143,
144, 145, 149, 150, 151, 152, 154,
155, 156, 157. 158, 163, 164, 168
Alexander, Mark, V. I, 611, 613,
V. II, 17, 317. 374. 427. 595.
623
Alexandria, V. I, 576
Allen, Col. Wm., V. II, 424
Alston, Willis, V. I, 155, 306, 361,
560,571,587.588
Ambler, John, V. I, 296
Ames, Fisher, V. I, 74, 206
Anburey, Thos., V. I, 12, 23, 24, 25,
V. II, 114, 115, 148
Ararat, V. II, 459, 463
Archer, Wm. S., V. 1, 452, 454, 532
Arfwedson, C. D., V. I, 580
Arnold, Benedict, V. I, 42
Austin, Archibald, V. I, 599
Badger, Edmund, V. II, 9, 37, 39,
Bagby, Dr. Geo. W., V. I, 37, 45,
V. II, 124, 158
Bagot, Mrs., V. II, 430
Bagot, Sir Charles, V. I, 532
Baker, Jerman, V. I, 31, 591
Baldwin, Briscoe, Jr., V. I, 611
Baldwin, Capt., V. II, 340
Baldwin, Joseph G., V. II, 214,
384, 404
Banister, Elizabeth, V. I, 28
Banister, Col. John, V. I, 28
Banister, John V. I, 28, 467
Banister, Patsy, V. I, 38
Banister, Robert, V. 1, 49, 118, 119,
Banks, Wm. B., V. II, 331 Note A,
419, 429
Barbour, James, V. I, 296, V. II,
202
Barbour, John S., V. I, 611, V. II,
45
Barbour, Philip P., V. I, 430, 460,
535, 612, 630, 631, V. II, 202
Barksdale, W. J., V. I, 534, V. II,
30, 45. 147 Note A, 366, 429,
543. 636
Battersea, V. I, 37, 38
Bayard, James A., V. I, 163, 171,
268, 338
Baylor, Robert, V. I, 561
Beebe, Wm., V. II, in
Beecher, Philemon, V. II, 201
Belknap, Rev. Jeremy, V. I, 66,
67
Bell, Mrs., V. II, 392, 404, 425,
457
Bell, Mary Anne, V. II, 457
Bennett, Anne, V. I, 21
787
788
Index
Bennett, Gov. Richard, V. I, 21
Benton, Thos. H., V. I, 443, 515,
567, V. II, 51, 63, 77, 203, 228,
231, 234. 302. 314. 336, 356, 374.
381, A07, 452, 544, 623, 624, 668
Bermuda, V. 1, 60, 64, 70, 71, 72
Best, Lord Chief Justice, V.I, 534
Betsy, Johnny's Wife, V. II, 50
Beverley, Elizabeth, V. I, 12
Beverley, Mumford, V. I, 296
Beverley, %^usan, V. I, 12
Bibb. Dr., V. I, 560
Biddle, Nicholas, V. II, 39
Bidwell, Barnabas, V. I, 199, 225,
226, 229, 210, 2t2, 246, 247, 248,
249. 250 Note A, 255, 256, 265,
279, 408, 508, 601
Bmney, Horace, V. II, 46, 65
Binns, V. I, 364, 409
Birkbeck, Morris, V. I, 3 Note A,
V. II, 168
Bizarre, V. I, 3 Note A, 6, 18, 20,
43. 45. 74. 106, 118, 128, 129,
570, 598, V. II, 116, 415, 435,
474. 670
Bland, Giles, V. I, 22
Bland, Richard, V. I, 12, 14, 22
Bland, Richard of Jordan's Point,
V.I, 21
Bland, Theodorick, Jr., V. I, 6, 14,
18, 23, 25 Note A, 37, 49, 50, 81,
98, V. II, 53
Bland, Theodorick, Sr., V. I, 3, 18,
21, 23, 25 Note A. 29, 44, V. II,
268, 269, 270 Note A, 271
Bland, Theodorick of Westover, V.
I. 21
Bland, Dr. Thomas, V. I, 28
Bleccker, Harmanus, V. II, 63,
279, 602, 612
Blennerhassett, Herman, V. I, 303
Boiling Hall, V. I, 34
Boiling, Jane, V. I, 12, 16
Boiling, John of Cobbs, V. I, 16
Boiling, Powhatan, V. I, 153, V.
II, 175.258
Boiling, Robert, V. I, 8, 16
Bonaparte, V. I, 411, 426, 532
Bonaparte, Madame, V. I, 638
Booker, Edward, V. II, 638
Bouldin, James W., V. I, 147, 594,
595. 59*6, 599, V. II. 27, 175, 369.
372, 414, 454
Bouldin, Powhatan, V. II, 15, 98,
99
Bouldin, Thomas T., V. I, 571,
V. II, I, s Note A, 27,452
Bouldin, Wood, V. I, 3 Note A, V.
11,695
Bowling Green, V. I, 576
Boyle, John, V. I, 204
Breckenridge, Jno., V. I, 276
Brockenbrough, Mrs. John, V. I,
401,411,533
Brockenbrough, John, V. I, 63, 121,
142. 296, 387, 392, 410, 412, 430,
445. 450, 454. 458. 48«. 50i. 505»
509. 524. 535» 539. 558. 570. 573.
587, 602, 640, 643, 645, 650, V.
II. 5. 19. 35. 49. 54. »«. "5. 253.
305. 307. 308, 309, 310, 311, 313,
317. 344. 345. 347. 34«. 349. 357.
360, 361, 364, 367, 371, 372, 379.
399, 401. 407. 408, 424, 429, 431,
441, 442, 497, 514. 528, 544.
591. 593. 594, 635. 639. 641, 642,
650, 656, 661, 670
Brodnax, Wm. H., V. I, 611
Brooke, Judge Francis J., V. II,
Brougham, Henry, V. I, 284,
471
Brown, Robert, V. I, 225
Bruce, Qiarles, V. II, 104, 118, 122,
140, 155, 703
Bruce, James C, V. II, 122, 373
Bruce, James, V. I, 601, V. II,
104, 121, Id, Note A, 122, 422,
429
Bruce, Philip A., V. II, 434
Bryan, John C, V. II, 54, 538, 539,
540
Bryan, John Randolph, V. I, 31,
33, 41. 77. 587. V. II, 46, 47, 55,
56. 257, 262, 316, 352, 375. 380.
400, 458, 463, 465, 470, 480.
507. 518, 533, 537. 574. 575
Bryan, Mrs. Joseph, V. J I, 331,
391, 400, 464, 569, 574, 575, 576.
578, 579
Bryan, Joseph, V. I, 75, 127,
135. 136, 137. 180, 223, 291.
316. 332, V. II. 47, 330, 379
Note A, 543, 544, 564, 570.
650
Bryan, Thos. P., V. II, 375. 458.
463. 4^. 470, 575
Bryant, Wm. CuUen, V. II, 116
Buchanan, James, V. I, 655, 656,
657. 658. V. 11,65,90. 253
Buchanan, Mrs., V. I, 130
Buchanan, N., V. I, 32, including
Note A
Burges, Tristam, V. I, 649, V. II,
62 Note A, 322 Note A
Burr, Aaron, V. I, 169, 202, 205,
267, 289, 295, 296 ei seq., 560.
V. II, 315 Note A
Index
789
Burrill, James, V. II, 613 Note
A
Cabdl, Joseph C, V. 1, 68 including
Note A, 120, 296, V. II, 297
Cabell, Wm. H., V. I, 544 Note B,
V. II, 298, 299 Note A
Caldwell, John, V. II, 137
Calhoun, John C, V. I, 369, 370,
427» 435. 448r V. II, 15 Note A,
21, 22, 89, 137, 214, 238, 339,
4i3» 430
Call, Daniel, V. I, m, 105
Callender, Jas., V. I, 205, 216
Calvert, George, V. II, 425, 431
Cambreling, Churchill C., V. 1, 649
Campbell, Alexander, V. 1, 105, 112,
611, 619
Campbell, Charles, V. I, 53
Campbell, G. W., V. I, 204, 306
Campbell, John, V. I, 571
Cardwell. Wyatt, V. II, 10, 27,
368, 500
Carrington, Col. Qem, V. I, 150,
152, V. II, 26, 27, 261, 262, 344
Carrington, Gen. Edward, V. I,
601, V. II, 122, 429
Carrington, Henry, V. II, 27, 143,
257, 260, 703
Carrington, J. Cullen, V. II,
156
Camngton, Judge Paul, V. I, 19,
20, V. II, 26, 143, 258, 421
Carrington, Paul, jr., V. II, 261,
Carrington, Robert, V. II, 27, 258,
262 Note A, 680
Carter, Charles, V. I, 76
Carter, George of Corotoman, V. I,
68
Carter, Lelia S., V. I, 68, id. Note
A, 75. 76, 77. "7. 132, V. II, 271,
^530,539.541.^542
Carter, Mary W., 21, 68
Cartersville, V. I, 582
Cary, Col. Archibald, V. I, 113
Caton, Miss, V. II, 402
Cawsons, V. I, 3 Note A, 6, 7, 9, 26,
^ 37. 83
Celia, Jupiter's Wife. V. II, 50
Channmg, Wm. EUery, V. II,
102, 116
Chapman, Dr., V. II, 37, 598
Charlotte Court House, V. II,
343
Chase, Samuel, V. I, 201 et seq,
including 205 Note A
Chastdllux, Marquis de, V. I, 3, 11,
25
Cheves, Langdon, V. I, 369, 371
Choate, Rufus, V. I, 509, V. II,
217
Christie, Gabriel, V. I, 155, 163,
560
Claiborne, Dr. John Herbert, V.
1.52
Claremont, V. II, 424
Clark, Christopher, V. I, 186, 204,
266, V. II, ^35
Clark, Col., V. II, 373, 429
Clark, Daniel, V. I, 305
Clark, Geo. Rogers, V. II, 221
Clark, Rev. John T., V. II, 246,
247 Note A, 501
Clark, Wm., V. II, 221
Clay, Henry, V. I, 67, 211, 369,
370. 381, 385. 425. 429. 440, 448.
451 Note A, 452, 473, 504. 511.
513. 524 Note A, 527, 541, 634,
V. 11, 15, 22, 36, 47, 117, 197
Note A, 203, 247, 334, 338, 377.
383, 630
Clay, Mrs. Henry, V. I, 515
Clay, John Randolph, V. I, 636,
639, 641, 646. 647, 655, 656, 657,
658, 659, V. II, 58, 322, 376, 457,
458, 459. 466, 640
Clay, Joseph, V. I, 177, 287, 307,
532, 340, 349, 350. 364, 389, V.
11,68.459,591,650
Clmton, George, V. I, 308, 339, 342,
348,349
Clmton, George, Jr., V. I, 350
* Coalter, Elizabeth T., V. I, 11. 30.
31. 33. 35. 38. 40, 41. 57. 59. 72,
77. loi, 133, 154, 463, 468. V. II.
46, 52, 55. 164, 271, 304, 312. 313,
316, 324, 332, 344, 345. 347, 348,
350. 351. 352, 361, 362, 365. 366,
390, 392, 394. 396. 396, 397. 399.
402, 446, 458, 524, 531. 627,
666
Coalter, Judge John, V. I, 33, 45,
V. II, 54, 111,394.539.541
Coalter. St. George T., V. 11, 56
Cobb, V. I. 450, V. II. 624
Cochrane, Admiral, V. I. 412
Cochrane, Mr., V. I, 73, 85, 87,
88
Coke, Jr., V. I, 530
Coleman, Dr. Ethelbert A., V. II,
219. 375. 504
Coleman, Manon, V. II, 390, 504
Coles, Isaac, V. II, 373
Coles, Isaac A., V. 1, 263, 264
Colimibia College, V. I, 73. 8j
Conrad- David Holmes, V. II,
80
790
Index
Conway, Moncure D., V. I, 85, 89,
V. II, 320
Cooke, John Esten, V. I, 61 1
Cooke, John R., V. I, 608, 611, 612,
613, V. II, 521
Cooke, Philip, V. I, 61 1
Coolidge, Thos., V. I, 13
Corea, AbW, V. I, 558, V. II, 433.
59«
Coupland, Carter, V. H, 458,
490
Crawford, Wm. H., V. I. 87. 182,
366, 367 Note A, 496, 497, 504,
V. II, 430, 432
Crowninshield, Benj. N., V. II, 212
Note A
Crowninshield, Jacob, V. 1, 237, 255,
560, V. II, 209, 212 Note A
Crump, Dr. John, V. I, 541, V. II,
2, 4, 5 Note A
Cnmby, V. II, 706
Cunningham, Edward, V. 1, 465, V.
II, 307. 424
Curd, Mr., V. II, 453
Curies Neck, V. I, 16
Curtis, Geo., V. II, 62
Cuthbert, Alfred, V. I, 428
Cutler, Dr. Manasseh, V. I, 207,
210, 363
Czar and Czarina, V. I, 642, 643
Dabbs, Rev. Mr., V. I, 594
Dabney, Robert L., V. II, 139, 156,
377, 664
Daingerfield, Martha, V. I, 27, 37,
V. II. 53
Dallas, Geo. M., V. I, 365
Dana, Samuel W., V. II, 205
Daniel, Wm., V. I, 296
Davies, Samuel, V. I, 62, 63, V. II,
137, 141
Dawson, Beau, V. I, 502, 560, V. II,
318
Dawson, Wm. J., V. I, 15
Dayton, Jonathan, V. I, 303
Dearborn, Gen. H. A. S., V. II, 79
Decatur, Stephen, V. I, 309, V.
II. 279, 334, 335, 339, 402.
624
Decius, V. I, 223, 225, 231, 246,
247, 250, 254
De Neuville, V. II, 430
De Neuville, Madame, V. II, 430
Note A, 526
Dexter, Samuel, V. II, 202
Dillon, Edward, V. II, 113
Dillon, Dr. James, V. II, 158
Doddridge, Philip, V. I, 607, 611,
612
Dowse, Edward, V. II, 62
Drayton, V. I, 496
Dromgoole, Geo. C, V. I, 611
Duane, Wm., V. I, 339, 349. 409
Dudley, Guilford. V. 1, 28
Dudley, Mrs. Guilford, V. 1, 28, 33,
37, 129 including Note A, 131,
V. II, 276, 285, 548
Dudley, Theodore, V. I, 6, 19, 29,
60, 87, 89, 119, 300, 317, 413.
414, 415, 444, 563, 565, 581, V.
11, 51, 68, 70, 106. 107, 168. 301.
305, 328. 330, 343. 344, 345. 351.
354, 359, 376, 377, 389. 394. 395,
396, 398. 399, 401, 403. 419. 426.
432, 434. 453. 457, 458, 459. 47i.
495, 497. 508, 515, 521, 544, 590.
591, 689, 707
Dunbar, Dr., V. II, 32
Dumfries, V. I, 576
Dupont de Nemours, V. I, 467
Dupont, lT6n6e, V. I, 467
Dupont, Victor, V. I, 467
Early, Peter, V. I, 204, 256, 293
Eaton, Anna, V. I, 28
Eaton, Gen. Thomas, V. I, 28
Eaton, Wm., V. I, 222
Eboe, Randolph's Slave, V. I, 636
Edgewood, V. I, 66
Edgeworth, Maria, V. II, 440
Edinburgh Review, V. I, 284
Edwards, Ninian, V. I, 496
Eggleston, Jos.. V. I, 296, 357. 358
V. II. 655
Elliott, Wm. H., V. II. 178, 355.
455, 490
Eppes. John W., V. I, 100. 177, 256,
270. 290, 306, 365, 386, 571. 592
Note A, 593 Note A. 596. 597
Note A, 599, V. II. 176, 655
Eppes, Mrs. John W., V. II, 70
Essex, V. I, 18, 43, V. II. 7, 50. 453,
690 Note A, 695, 696. 700
Este, David K., \. II. 65 Note A
Ewing, Mr., V. I, 65. 70. 85
Falmouth, V. I, 578
Farrar, Sam., V. I, 572
Findley, Wm., V. I, 255, 256
Fitzhugh, Wm. H., V. I, 61 1
Fleming, Miss, V. I., 12
Floumoy, Thos. S., V. II, 183
Floyd, Davis, V. I., 303
Floyd, John, V. I., 505. 535
Folsom, Charles. V. I. 492
Forman, Gen.. V. II, 465, 565, 569,
578,579,580
Forsyth, Jno., V. I, 429
Index
791
Foster, Sir Atigustus, V. II, 604
Fredericksburg, V. I, 576
Fry, Elizabeth, V. II, 436, 437
Fuller, Timothy, V. I, 479
Gabriel (Negro), V. II, 250
Gales, and Seaton, V. I, 448, V. II,
88
Gallatin, Albert, V. I, 87, 98, 155,
185, 227, 251, 252, 267, 272, 275,
277. 307, 325, 330, 367, 532, 547.
556, 558. V. II, 14, 229, 430,
581, 582 Note A
Gardenier, Berent, V. II, 213 Note
A
Gamett, James M., V. I, 263, 264,
287, 296, 350, 361, A54, 560, $65,
_ 7, 407,5'
Gamett, Old Mrs., V. I, 570
566, 570, 613,
A, 317, 407, 592
164 Note
Gerelot, V. II, 70
Gibson, Dr., V. I, 365
Giles, Wm. B., V. I, 121, 172, 173,
175, 200, 286, 295, 355. 358 Note
A. 505, 532, 534» 589, 610 Note
A, 612, 613, Vol. II, 37, 87, 123,
297, 410, 428, 542, 582, 587,
655
Gilmer, Francis W., V. I, 31, 55,
V. II, 77, 79 Note A, 106, III,
307, 343, 348, 360, 365i 625, 630
Note A, 641
Gilmer, Geo. R., V. I, 496, V.
11,65
Glenlyvar, V. I, 107, 118
Goldsborough, La Belle, V. II, 401,
402
Goode, Hon. John, V. I, 52
Goode, Mr. V. I, 536, 611
Goodrich, Chauncey, V. I, 162
Goodrich, S. G., V. II, 62
Gordon, Wm. V. I, 536, 608, 611,
V. II, 231
Gore, Mrs. Christopher, V. II, 401,
404
Granger, Gideon, V. I, 185, 190,
199, 219 Note A, 286, V. II,
572
Grant, Ulysses S., V. 1, 14 Note
A.
Green, John W., V.I, 607, 611, V.
11,94
Green, W. B., V. I, 596, V. II, 26,
27, 174, 672, 675, 681
Gregg, Andrew, V. I, 155, 233
Grigsby, Hugh Blair, V. I, 59, Id.
Note A, 92, V. II, 64, 93, 165,
354, 6ao, 684
Groves, Miss, V. I, 12
Grundy, Felix, V. I, 369, 371
Gunn, Genl. James, V. I, 182
Hackley, Jane, V. II, 495
Hall, Ciaptain Basil, V. 1, 580
Hamilton, Alexander, V. I, 87, 184,
^253,295,297,549,617
Hamilton, Gen. James, V. I, 519,
V. II, 352, 381, 625
Hammond, Tabez D., V. I, 569
Hampton, Wade, V. I, 560
Hanover Court House, V. I, 576
Hardawav, Daniel, V. I, 571
Hardin, Benjamin, V. II, 202
Harding, Chester, V. II, 68, 95
Hargrave, Hester, V. II, 324
Harper, Robert Goodloe, V. I, 155,
163, 203, Id, Note A, 217, V. 11,
112 Note A
Harrison, Randolph, V. I, 107, 123,
V. II, 275
Harrison, Mrs. Randolph, V. I,
107
Harrison, Thos., V. I, 296
Harrison, Wm. Henry, V. I, 155,
V. II, 305 Note A
Hartston, Mrs., V. I, 46, 47, 49
Harvey, Jacob, V. I, 39, 463, 470,
497, 563, 639, 647, V. II, 20, 80,
253, 262, 372, 389, 408, 436, 437,
439, 454f 662
Harvey, W. T., V. II, 257
Harvie, Gabriella, V. I, 121, V. II,
635, 639, 646
Hay, Geo., V. I, 300, 305, 345, 348,
354, V. II, 562
Heam, Mr., V. I, 48
Henry, Patrick, V. I, 95, 99, 112,
113, 142, 143,^/5^9., 146, et seq.,
including 147 Note A, 462, 485,
493, V. II, 5, 64, 127, 251, 318
Henry, Wm. Wirt, V. I, 112,
113
Heth, Harry, V. I, 570, 571
Hetty, Essex's Wife, V. II, 52, 453,
696, 700
Hoar, Ebenezer Rockwood, V. II,
172
Hodgson, Adam, V. I, 577
Hoge, Dr. Moses, V. I, 149, 594,
V. II, 27, 137, 177, 260, 380, 429,
654, 655, 662
Holland, Jas., V. I, 289, 588
Holmes, John, V. I, 446, 448
Hooper, Edward, V. I, 32^
Hundley, Elisha E., V. II, 54, 331,
637 Note A, 680
Hunter, R. M. T., V. I, 561
Huskisson, V. I, 529
792
Index
Indian, John, V. I, i8
Innes, Col. James, V. I, 75, 79, 80,
95 induding Note A
Irby, Edmund, V. II, 424, 635
Irvmg, Washington, V. I, 301, 303
639. 640, V. II, 63, 65, 66, 442,
446
Isham, Catharine, V. I, 10
Isham, Henry, V. I, 10
Jack, Randolph's Bermuda friend,
V. I, 70, 100
Jackson, Andrew, V. I, 23,473, 504i
544. 553, 634, 635, 636, 647. 648,
650, 651, 654, 659, 660, 661, V.
II, II, 18, 40, 106, 194, 196, 216,
230,381,430
Jackson, James, V. 1, 183, 258
ackson, John G., V. I, 166, 218,
260,270, 291, 301, 305
Jackson, Stonewall, V. I, 14 Note
A
Jarvis, J. W., V. II, 66
Jefferson, Thos., V. I, 13, 119, 171,
214, 220, 224, 230, 232, 246, 251,
252, 253, 254, 265, 267, 268, 271.
275, 278, 279, 280, 281, et seq.f
289, 290, 302, 305, 306, 307, 309,
311, 320, 323, 325, 326. 348, 353.
359, 427, 434, 446, 448, 488, 533,
549, 558, 573, 593, 637, V. II,
70, 77, 103, 219, 228, 232 Note
A, 287, 542, 571, 585, 608, 630,
678
Jesup, Gen., V. I, 513, 516, 522
Jeter, Jeremiah Bell, V. II, 91
Jewett, Samuel C, V. II, 79
Johnny, J. R.'s Servant, V. I, 300,
521, 561, 573. 636, V. II, 7, 31. 39,
40, 41, 42, 43, 50, 184, 197,355,
470, 696, 698, 700 Note A
Johnson, Achilles D., V. II, 264
Johnson, Chapman, V. I, 605, 611,
612, 613, 614, 615, 616, 617, 618,
^ V. II, 57, 95, 200 Note A
Johnson, Richard M., V. I, 365,
366, 369, 371
Johnson, Wm. R., V. I, 532, 550,
V. II, 115, 315,425,633,670
Johnston, Josiah S., V. I, 521,
635
Johnston, Judge and Mrs. Peter, V.
I, 120, 121, 134, 140, V. II,
288
Jones, Walter, V. II, 66
Jordan, Dr. I. H., V. 11, 180,
181
Joynes, Thos. R., V. I, 612, 632
Jupiter, John Randolph's Slave, V.
I. 573. 636, 641, V. II. 7. 31, 50,
197. 306, 495. 597. 696 Note A
Kennedy, John P., V. I, 69
Kennon, Commodore Beverley, V.
1. 15
Kennon, Beverley, son of Com-
modore Kennon, V. I, 15
Key, Francis Scott, V. I, 9, 21, 145,
165, 387. 388, 390. 395. 399,
400, 404, 405, 410, 412. 413, V. 11,
49, 50, 67, 156, 220, 248, 305,
343, 35 ^ 358, 403. 4^5. 430, 435.
451, 457, 497. 498, 591. 619. 655,
661
Key, Miss, daughter of Philip Bar-
ton Key, V. II, 403
Key, Philip Barton, V. 1, 203, V. II,
233, 304
Kilpatnck, Mr., the teacher, V. II,
459, 463
King, Rufus, V. 1, 87, 408, 454, 555,
V. II, 430, 431, 600, 612
Kippax, V. I, 7
Kippax Church, V. I, 22, 34
Kirkpatrick, Rev. John S., V. II,
2, 190 Note A, 264
Kremer, George, V. I, 514
Lacy, Rev. Wm. S., V. II, 209,
267, 371, 410, 428, 467, 507
LaFayette, V. I, 44, 47, 48, 502
Lambert, John, V. II, 408, 453
Langdon, John, V. I, 155, 560, V.
II, 600, 601 Note A
Lawson, Gen. Robert, V. I, 44,
47
L'Enfant Pierre Charles, V. I,
554
Lee, Charles, V. 1, 14, 204, Id. Note
A
Lee, Gen. Geo. Washington Custis,
V. I, 14, Id. Note A
Lee, General Henry, V. I, 14, 25
Lee, Henry, V. I, 14
Lee, Gen. Robert E., V. I, 13, 14,
Id. Note A, 51
Lee, Robert E., Jr., V. I, 52
Lee, Sydney Smith, V. I, 15
Lee, Gen. Wm. Henry Fitzhugh, V.
I, 14 Id. Note A
Le Grand, Mrs. Nash, V. II, 143,
144, 145, 154, 163
Leib, Michael, V. I, 179
Leigh, Benjamin Watkins, V. I,
32, 36, 354, 355, 413, 571, 605,
608, 610, 611 Note A, 612, 632,
V. II, 24, 25, 26, 117 Note A, 328,
635
Index
793
Leigh, John Randolph, V. II,
Leigh, Wm., V. I, 3^. 467, 571,
601, 612, 613, 651, V. II, 2, 6, 7,
8, 10, 49, 51, 52. 53, 54, 55, 56,
57, 60, 181, 184, 185, 335, 348.
350, 361, 366, 368, 370. 413, 419,
422, 429, 434 Note A, 462, 539.
540i 565, 639, 648, 694
Lewis, Memwether, V. II, 221
Lianootirt, Due de, V. II, 113, 127
Lieven, Prince, V. I, 640, 656, 661
Lincoln, Levi, V. I, 185
Livingston, Edward, V. I, 155, 502,
656
Lloyd, Edward, V. I, 565, V. II,
612 Note A, 620
Lloyd, Jas., V. I, 416
Logan, Dr. Geo., V. II, 597
Logan, Richard, V. I, 601
Logwood, Tom, V. I, 593
Loughboxx)tigh, Nathan, V. I, 19,
582, 643, V. II, 8, 381 Note B,
408, 631
Love, Tno., V. I, 323
Lowndes, Mr., V. I, 565, V. II,
Lowndes, Wm., V. I, 369
Machen, Lewis, V. II, 82
Macon, Nathaniel, V. I, 155, 166,
167 Note A, 169, 170, 177, 214,
222, 246, 248, 252, 289, 292,
306, 307, 332, 340, 364, 370, 560,
566, 573» V. II, 54, I94i 302, 311.
312, 317, 357 Note A, 443, 590,
592, 594 Note A, 601, 624, 625,
634
Madison, Dolly, V. I, 338
Madison, James, V. I, 25, 67, 74,
97, 185, 215, 228, 245, 253. 259,
260, 267, 283. 289, 325, 327, 329,
333. 336, 337. 338, 339, 342, 351,
353, 408, 409, 427, 434, 442, 547,
590, 605, 607, 612, 613, 642, V.
II, 22, 94, 203, 241, 268, 287, 452,
542,571,582,585,630,716
Marshall, John, V. I, 13, 87, 112,
113, 114, 119, 155, 164, 185, 198,
201, 295. 296, 302, 461, 487, 533,
605, 608, V. II, 5, 78, 128, 194,
248, 275, 416, 424, 430, 431, 433,
518, 530, 546, 617, 637
Marshall, John of Charlotte Co.,
Va., V. II, 6, 9, 10, 16, 26, 368,
462, 604, 695, 702
Marshall, Thos., V. I, 100
Martin Luther, V. I, 204, 207 Note
A, 215.217
Mason, Geo., V. II, 5
Mason, John Y., V. I, 611
Massey, John E., V. I, 53
Matoax, V. 1, 3 Note A, 33, 35, 37,
40, 45, 127, 128
Maury, Walker, V. I, 50, 55, 56, 57,
59, 60, 72, 86
Maxwell, Wm., V. II, 133
McCabe, W. Gordon, V. I, 53
McDuffie, Geo., V. I, 567
McHenry, James, V. I, 161
McLane, Louis, V. I, 493, 642, V.
11,446
Meade, Mrs. Geo. Everard, V. II,
326
Meade, Hodijah, V. I, 454
Meade, Rev. Wm., V. I, 12, 387, V.
II, 49, 50, 54, 55, 56. 57, 425, 656,
661
Meade, Wm. Thompson, V. II,
326
Melbourne, Julius, V. II, 80
Melish, John, V. I, 576
Mercer, Col., V. 1, 68 Note A, 339
Mercer, Chas. P., V. I,* 611
Mercer, Fen ton, V. II, 425
Mercer, Hugh, V. I, 572, V. II,
46
Mercer, John, V. I, 296, 348,
572
Merry, Dr. Samuel, V. II, 333
Michaux, Jacob, V. II, 189
Milledge, Jno., V. II, 572
Miller, Thos., V. I, 602, V. II,
421
MUls, Elijah H., V. II. 226, 408
Minor, Gen., V. 1, 348
Mitchell, John, V. 11, 1 14 Note B
Molly, Little, V. II, 690 Note B,
696
Monroe, James, V. I, 253, 293, 299,
301, 304, 325, 408, 41 1. 453, 454,
479, 605, 612, 643, V. II, 22, 77,
94, 235, 237, 268, 294, 494. 506,
585
Monroe, Mrs., V. I, ^43, 397
Montgomery, Jno., V. I, 360
Moore, Samuel McD., V. I, 537
Moore, Thos., V. I, 557, 577, V.
11,95,440
Moreau, Gen., V. I, 454
Morris, Gouvemeur, V. I, 155, V.
II, 273 Note A, 274, 275, 277, 278,
279, 280, 281, 290, 295 Note A,
300, 301
Morris, Gouvemeur, Jr., V. II, 293,
299, 301
Morris, Lewis R., V. I, 169
Morris, Phoebe, V. II, 65
794
Index
Morris, Richard, V. I, 6ii, 612,
632
Morton, Little Joe, V. II, 141,
142
Morton, Capt. John, V. II, 5
Morton, John, V. II, 141
Morton, Major James, V. II, 141,
377 Note A
Morton, Mrs., Mother in Israel,
V. II, 141
Morton, Thos., V. I, 40, V. II, 27,
637,669
Morton, Dr. Wm., V. II, 377
Morton, Col. Wm., V. II, 361, 372,
373
Morton, Wm., V. I, 571, V. II,
5
Moses, Randolph's Slave, V. II,
7
Munford, G. S., V. I, 225, 290,
350
Munford, Geo. Wythe, V. 1, 15, 618,
V. II, 92
Munford. Wm., V. I, 15
Murray, Daniel, V. J I, 617
Nancy, HeWy's Daughter, V. II, 50,
453 » 694, 695, 696, 700
Nelson, Hugh, V. I, 14
Nelson, Mr., V. [, 289
Nelson, T. M., V. II, 320
Ncssclrode, Coimt, V. I, 655, 657,
658
Nicholas, John, V. I, 155, 156, 168,
339
Nicholas, Wilson Gary, V. I, 155,
175. 177. 256, 295, 339, 560,
589
Nicholson, Joseph H., V. I, 138,
I55» 163, 204, 214, 220, 225, 230,
246, 252, 253, 254, 257, 267,
268, 271, 286, 287, 289, 297, 299,
301, 303, 304, 305» 319, 332. 333,
340» 348, 349» 350. 352, 355» 3^0,
363. 396, 559, 560, 561, 562, 565,
586, 589, 590, V. II, 234. 235,
250, 303. 304, 312, 313, 316, 328,
382, 391. 398, 402, 425, 434, 453,
456,457, 458, 487, 581, 587 Note
A, 590 Note A, 591 Note A, 600,
670, 672, 673
Nicholson, Mrs. Jos. H., V. II, 587,
588, 591
Niles, Hezekiah, V. II, 82, 87
Oaks, The, V. I., 578
Occoquan, V. I, 576, 578
Ogden, David, V. II, 279, 291, 292,
297, 298 Note A
Oliver, Robert, V. II, 426
Otis, Harrison Gray, V. I, 158, 408,
556
Page, Mrs. Carter, V. I, 1 13
Page, Thomas Nelson, V. I, 124,
PalZrey, John G.^ V. II, 491
Parish, David, V. II, 598, 599,
676
Parish, Mr., V. II, 488, 493
Parrish, Dr. Isaac, V. 11, 37,
43
Pamsh, Dr. Josiah, V. II, 37
Parton, James, V. II, 62, 107,
384.668
Peales, The, V. I, 560
Pegram, Edward, V. I, 296
Perry, Capt. Matthew C, V. 1, 636,
638
Physick, Dr., V. II, 37, 312,
461 .
Pickering, Judge John, V. I, 200,
210
Pickering, Timothy, V. I, 161, 231,
325, 326. 348, V. II, 70, 209,
603, 610
Pilgrim's Progress, V. I, 62
Pinkney, Wm., V. I, 87, 428, 459,
461, V. II, 81, 313 Note A.
666
Pleasants, Hugh R., V. I, 614, 632,
V. 11,90
Pleasants, James, V. I, 14, 296,
610, V. if, 202
Pleasants, John Hampden, V. 1, 15,
202 Note A
Plumer, Rev. Dr. Wm. S., V. II,
189
Plumer, Wm., V. I, 175, 176, 207,
556
Pocahontas, V. I, 16, 34
Poinsett, V. II, 430
Porter, Peter B., V. I, 369, 371
Potomac Creek, V. I, 580
Powell,AlfredH., V. I, 611
Powhatan, King, V. I, 16, Id,
Note B, 34
Price, Capt. Nat., V. II,
Princeton, V. I, 72. 73, 78
Pryor, Roger A., V. I, 15
Quashee, V. I, 463, 652, 670, 694
Queen, Randolph's Slave, V. II,
50
Quincy, Edmund, V. I, 249, V. II,
491, 601
Quincy, Josiah, V. I, 48, 98, 306.
307. 387. 390, 392. 393. 394. 396,
Index
795
Quincy, Josiah — Continued
407. 408, 409, 566, 593. 599, V.
II, 120, 146, 226, 227 Note A, 241
Note A, 251,542,600,601,612,
669
Quincy, Josiah, Jr., V. I, 509, V. II,
62, 89, 117, 172, 410, 491, 542
Raguet, Condy, V. II, 37, 46
Randall, Henry S., V. 1, 14 Note A,
V. II, 384
Randolph, Alfred M., V. I, 13
Randolph, Archibald, V. I, 107,
III
Randolph, Dr. Bathurst, V. I,
570. 572, V. II, 422, 423, 636, 638
Randolph, Beverley, V. I, 13, 75,
79, 80
Randolph, Brett, V. I, 16, 105, 133,
V. II, 288
Randolph, Mrs. David Meade, V. I,
121, V. II, 282 Note A, 299
Randolph, Edmund, V. 1, 13, 31, 67,
74» 75i 78f 79 including Note A,
93, V. II, 202
Randolph, Elizabeth, V. I, 12, 22
Randolph, Prances Bland, V. I, 7,
21, 22, 28, 29, 30 including Note
A, 31 including Note A, 32, 33, 34,
35. 36, 37, 39, 42, 43, 44. 4^, 47.
48, 64, 68, 73, 86, 88, V. II, 269,
270, 271, 517, 529
Randolph, Geo. Wythe, V. I, 13
Randolph, Harold, V. II, 67, 70
Randolph, Henry, V. I, 12
Randolph, Innes, V. I, 14, V. II,
67
Randolph, Isham of Dungeness, V.
I, 12, 15
Randolph, Sir John, V. I, 12, 13
Randolph, John son of Sir John, V.
If 13
Randolph, John, Sr., Father of John
Randolph of Roanoke, V. I, 7, 16,
18, Id, Note A, 19, 29, 35,39, V.
11,27
Randolph, Mrs. John, V. I, 107
Randolph, John, of Roanoke
VOLUME I
Birth and Ancestry
His birthplace, 3
Date and Circumstances of his birth,
3-6
His Randolph Ancestry, 9
Wm. Randolph of Turkey Island,
9
J. R.'s Grandfather, 17
His Father, 18, 34
His Bland Ancestry, 21
Col. Theodorick Bland, 23, 37
The Banisters, 28, 37, 38
The Dudleys, 28
Theodorick Bland, Sr., 29
J. R.'s Mother, 29, 36, 37, 64, 74
St. George Tucker, 29, 33, 36, 42f
43, 44, 45, 66, 74, 75, 127
Childhood
J. R.'s Childhood, 35
nis boyhood, 37
Matoax, 35, 37, 39, 40, 41, 127, 128
Arnold's Invasion of Virginia, 42
Flight of J. R.'s Mother to Bizarre,
Her Stay There, 45
J. R. and his brother when at Bi-
zarre, 45 including Note A to 50
Interest of St. George Tucker in
J. R.'s Education, 49 to 51
Virginian discipline, 51 to 54
Youth
J. R. and Walker Maury his
teacher, 55
His Youthful Friendship with
Littleton Waller Tazewell, 57
J. R. as a Schoolboy, 59, 85
His Early Reading, 60, 88
Pilgrim's Progress, 62
J. K. at Bermuda, 64, 70, 71, 72,
100
Returns to Williamsburg, 72
At Princeton, 72, 85
At Columbia College, 73, 85
J. R. Studies Law with Edmtmd
Randolph, 74, 9^, 93
Meets Joseph Bryan, 75
Becomes Dissipated, 75, 88
Has Scarlet Fever, 75
Meets St. George Tucker's Second
Wife, 75, 77 ,
Spends some Weeks at Wm. and
Mary, 75
Returns to Philadelphia, 75
J. R.'s Friendship for Henry
Rutledge, 76
His Affectionate Relations with the
Tuckers, 80
Theodorick, J. R.'s brother, 74, 80
Richard, J. K.'s brother, 64, 73,
74
Henry Adams' Charge of Timidity
against J. R., 83
796
Index
Early Acquires hatred of debt, 89
Attended lectures on Anatomy and
Physiology, 91
Early Relations to Politics, 93, 97,
including 94 Note A
Witnesses the Inauguration of
Washington, 95
}. R.'s Companions in Philadelphia,
100
Richard Randolph, loi, 128
Nancy Randolph Scandal, 106
Duel Between Randolph and
Robert Barraud Taylor, 123
Early Manhood
Addiction to Racing, 127, 130
Visits Georgia, 127, 135, 136
T. R. Settles Down at Bizarre, 128
Its Household, 129
T. R.'s Mobility, 129
His Friend John Thompson, 130
Kindness of John Wicldiam, 131
T. R.'s Habits at Bizarre, 131
Nancy Randolph Letters, 121,
134
Henry M. Rutledge, 135
Congressional Career, DSbtU and Pe-
r%od of Leadership
J. R.'s Gallomania, 140
His Political D6but, 141
Debate at Charlotte Court House
between Him and Patrick Henry,
142 including Note A
Enters Congress, 154
J. R.'s First Appearance in Debate,
155
His Next, 155
Speech on Army Reduction, 156
Calls Army ragamuffins, 159
Is Insulted and Complains to
President Adams, 160
Action of the House Thereon, 162
J. R. Proposes Discharge of Super-
numerary Offices, 165
Speech on Western Reserve of
Connecticut, 165
Opposes Giving Medal to Captain
Truxton, 166
Opposes Mausoleum in Honor of
Washington, 166
Washington, May He be Damned,
166
Neat Reply to Rutledge, 167
Burr-Jefferson Contest in House,
167
R. Made Chairman of House Com*
mittee of Ways & Means, 169
Speech on Apportionment, 170
Speech on Federal Judicial
Establishment, 170
Other Activities, 174
Plumeron R., 175
R. Re6lect«i, 177
Again Chairman of Ways & Means,
177
Also Made Chauman of Committee
Charged with Maritime Ques-
tions, 177
Speech on Samuel Adams, 177
R.'s Relations to the Louisiana Pur-
chkse, 178
Views About Compensation of
Federal Officers, 179
R. favors Amendment Requiring
Electors to Name President and
Vice-President, 180
Yazoo Fraud, 180
Samuel Chase Imp^t^ifneilt; 200
Attacks of John Quincy Adams on
J. R., 211
J. K. Proposes Amendment Author-
izing President to Remove a
Federal Judge, 220
Eulogizes Jefferson's First Adminis-
tration, 220
Congressional Career, /. R.'s
Quarrel with the Je^erson
Administration
Again Chairman of Ways &
Means, 222
Opposes Giving Medal to Wm.
Eaton, 222
Decius Letters and Circumstances
in which They Originated, 223,
246
J. R.'s Speeches on Gregg's Reso-
lution, 233
Barnabas Bidwell, 247
J. R.'s Views on Impressment, 250
Efforts of Jefferson to detach
J. R.'s Friend, 252
J. R. Assails Non-Importation
Bill, 254
His Great Influence at this Time,
255
Bitterness Aroused by him, 256
He Offers Resolutions Aimed at
Contractors, 257
Again Opposes Yazoo Claims, 258
Gives Publicity to House Proceed-
ings Touching the Spanish
Message, 259
Index
797
Attacks Madison, 259
Attacks Robert Smith, 261
Proposes Repeal of Salt Tax, 261
Collison With Thomas Mann Ran-
dolph, Jr., 262
Reasons for J. R/s Estrangement
from Jefferson, 265
Strictures on Jefferson by J. R.,
281
He Becomes Known in England,
284
Giles Opposes Him, 286
Again Becomes Chairman of Ways
& Means, 287
Reaction in Favor of J. R., 287
His Indifference to Military Pre-
parations, 289
Remains Hostile to Jefferson, 290
His Attitude Towards Bill Prohibit-
ing Importation of Slaves, 293
Burr Trial, 295
Re-elected to Congress in 1807,
306
Succeeded by Campbell as Chair-
man of Ways & Means, 306
Joseph B. VamuxA, 306
Van Zandt Incident, 308
Attacks Standing Army, 309
Chesapeake Incident, 309, 311
J. R/s Military Views, 310
Speech in Behalf of Revolutionary
Veterans, 312
Challenged by Gen. Wilkinson, 313
»J. R. Opposes General Embargo,
317
J. R.*s Criticism on Jefferson's
SeconH Term, 323
Edward Hooper s Comments on
I R., 323
J.R. Se<
Seeks to Make James Monroe
President, 325, 330
Relations Between Jefferson and
Madison and Monroe, 326
Correspondence between J. R. and
Monroe, 331
Struggle Between Madison and
Monroe for Presidency, 342
Estrangement of J. R. from Monroe
344
Madison Nominated to Presidency,
350
Monroe Defeated by Madison,
fl"
J. R. Assails Giles, 355
Proposes Military and Naval Re-
duction, 359
Ridicules Montgomery, 360
J. R.'s Standings in nth Congress,
361
Feud Between |/Uston and J. R.,
361
J. R. Gives Eppes the Lie, 365
Elected to 12th Congress, 368
Henry Clay and Other Remarkable
Men in this Congress, 369 _.
War Republicans Control House, i
370
J. R.'s Brilliant Speech on Question
of Peace or War, 371
Calhoun's Reply, 370
J. R. Qpppses War of 1812 at Every
Step, 380
Addresses a Letter to His Constit-
uents, 381 .^.^
Congressional Career — Is Defeated
for Re-election
Defeated by Eppes, 386
Occupations Alter His Defeat,
386
Correspondence Between Randolph
and Key, Quincy and Brocken-
brough during War of 18 12, 387
J. R. Takes Part in War, 413 I
Sets Out for Morrisania to See
Tudor Randolph, 414
Returns to Roanoke, 416
Sends Bitter Letter to Nancy
Randolph, 415
Addresses a Letter on War to James
Lloyd, 416
Congressional Career — In Congress
Again
Solicited to go to Congress, 417
Addresses Letter to One of his
Adherents, 417
Returns to Congress, 426
And with Increased Power, 426
Finds Rexniblican Party Adrift,
426
Speaks on Various Topics, 428
Gives Wm. Pinkney a Thrust,
428
Is Happily Replied to by Forsyth,
429
Ridicules Clay, 429
Collides with PhUip P. Barbour,
430
Opposes Bill to Incorporate a Na-
tional Baxik, 430
Strictures on Madison, 433
Attacks Tariff, 434
Attacks Slave Traffic in District
of Columbia, 437
Supports Compensation Bill, 440
Challenges Webster, 442
/
798
Index
Seized With Violent Illness, 443
Party Conditions in 18 19, 444
The Missouri Question, 446
Monroe Makes Overtures to J. R.,
, 453
J. R. Recovers Popularity, 454
Apportionment Bill, 455
Eulogv of Pinkney, 459
First Voyage to Europe, 462
Letters to Elizabeth T. Coalter
from England, 463
Wanderings in Great Britain, 470
Social Success in England, 470
Speech on Grecian Indep^dence,
472
Speech on Internal Improvements,
479
J. R/s Relations to Judge Roane
and Daughter, ^88
Speeches on Tariff Bill of 1844,
489
Reply to Louis McLane, 493
On Committee to Investigate
Charges Against Crawford, 496
Makes Address to his Constitutents,
496
Second Voyage to Europe, 496
Travels Abroad, 499 to 504
Teller in Presidential Election, 504
Re-elected to House in 1825, 504
Elected to U. S. Senate, J05
Attacks on John Quincy Adams and
John Adams, 507
Speech on the Panama Mission and
Attack on Henry Clay, 509
Is Challenged by Clay and Fights
Duel, 513
Speech on Negro Slavery in South
America, 525
Speech on Executive Powers, 527
Voyage to Europe in 1826, 529
Letters from Europe in 1826, 530
Defeated for Re-election to the
Senate, 535
His Bearing after Defeat, 538
Is Re-elected to the House, 541
Becomes L<eader of the Opposition
to John Quincy Adams, 542
Speech on Retrenchment, 544
Congressional Career Ends, 553
Washington and the Roads Between
It and Roanoke
Washington in J. R.'s time, 554
His Social Life and Habits in
Washington, 559
His Journeys between Bizarre and
Roanoke and Washington, 570 I
His Ridicule of his Fellow Congress-
men, 588
Randolph as a Candidate
His Various Candidacies, 589
Virginia Contention of i82^jo.
His Election to the Convention,
601
Character of the Convention, 603
Its organization, 605
Part Taken by Randolph in its
Proceedings, 605
Membership of the Convention,
609
J. R/s first Speech in the Conven-
tion, 614
Attacks on Chapman Johnson,
615
Alexander Campbell's Reply to
J.R.,619
Some of Randolph's Speeches in the
Convention, 620
J. R.'s Criticism on the Attendance
of Women in the Lower House of
Congress, 628
He Makes Speech in Convention
Extolling Philip P. Barbour its
Presiding Officer, 630
His Great Influence in the Conven-
tion, 632, 633
Some of his Lively Observations in
the Convention, 632
Mission to Russia •
Becomes Minister to Russia, 634
Voyage to Russia, 636-638
Banquet at Norfolk before Embark-
ing, 636
False Reports About his Conduct
in Russia, 638
Presentation at St. Petersburg,
642
Letters from Russia, 643
Transactions at St. Petersburg,
646
Goes to London, 646
Wretched Condition of Health on
his Return to United States,
647
Sums Received by J. R. in Connec-
tion with the Russian Mission,
648
Attacks on Him in Congress, 649
Defence of J. R.'s Conduct on the
Russian Mission, 650
Index
799
VOLUME II
Like Sweet BeUs Jangled
Speeches of J. R. on his Return from
Rtissia, I
Attack on Thomas T. Bouldin at
Prince Edward Court House,
2
And on the Watkinses and Others,
5
Bitter Criticism by J. R. of Hotel
at Farmville, 6
Becomes Insane, 6-i6
Later Correspondence between J.R.
and Andrew Jackson, 1 1
Turns Against Jackson, i6
Visits Washington in Winter of
The End
Goes on from Cumberland to Phila-
delphia, 30
Last Interview with Henry Clay,
36
Reaches Philadelphia, 36
Last Days, 37
Services in his Honor in Phila-
delphia, 46
Body Brought back to Richmond,
46
Burial at Roanoke, 47
The Randolph Will Litigation
J. R.'s Wills and the Contest Over
Them, 49
Randolph as a Parliamentary Orator
Testimony by Northern Men to
J. R.'s Genius, 61
Commanded Undivided Attention,
64
Tributes to J. R.*s Eloquence and
Wilt, 62 el seq,
J. R/s Physical Characteristics
and Portraits, 66
Ridicule of J. R. as Speaker by
Niles, 82
Webster on J. R/s Extravagance in
Senate, 88
Randolph's District
J. R. its Magnus Apollo, 98
Explanation of his Great Influence,
100
The Morbid Curiosity Excited by
Him, 103
Character of His District, 103
ei seq.
Its Population, iii
Its Economic Characteristics, 118
Its Social Characteristics, 124
Peculiarities of Speech of its People,
127
Petersburg, 130
Slavery in J. R.'s District, 131 •"
Presbyterian Element in J. R.'s
District, 137
Manners in J. R.'s District, 146
Material Abundance in it, 149
Social Spirit of its People, 149
Their Religious Spirit, 150
Their Attractive Social Character-
istics, 150
Schools in J. R.*s District, 152
Its People Affectionate, Delightful
and Hospitable, 153
Its Homes as to Furniture and
Gardens, 154
Its People a Manly Race, 155
And Conspicuous for Law and
Order, 156
And for Freedom from Vice and
Dissipation, 157
But District Backward in a Mate-
rial Saise, 157
Tobacco Planting Main Industry,
158
Doctors and Ministers, 158
Character of Towns and Industrial
Activities, 159
Agricultural Pursuits, 162
Advance in Prosperity after 1812,
165
Lack of Prosperity Between 1820
and 1830, 166
Political Character of J. R.'s Dis-
trict, 167
Court Day in It, 169
Conservatism of J. R/s District as
to Clerkships, 173
Randolph on the Hustings
Recollections of Him by Some of
His Contemporaries, 174
General Observations on Randolph as
an Orator
His Peculiar Physical Apparatus as
an Orator, 200
His Sarcasm, 198
8oo
Index
His Witticisms and Epigrams,
200
His Brilliancy of Intellect, 200
His Culture, 207
His Readiness of Speech, 208
His Happy Imagery, 209
His Happy Phrases, 211
His Supposed Lack of Logic, 213
His Decline as a Speaker, 215
Randolph as a Statesman
Nothing National About Him, 218,
222
Attitude Towards Virginia, 219
His Relations to the National De-
fence, 223
** His Social and Sectional Prejudices,
226
Basis of His Qaims to Statesman-
ship, 227
His Statement of Jeffersonian Prin-
ciples, 232
His Political Constancy, Integrity
and Purity, 233
His Influence in Congress After
His Loss of Leadership, 236
Jealousy of Power Key to His
Political Career, 239
Reflections on his Hostility to War
of I812, 2A2
** His Views Acx)ut Slavery, 244
Randolph as a Man
His Personal Traits. 252
His Temper, 253, 262
His Quarrel with the Carringtons,
258
His Quarrel with St. George Tucker,
267
His Savage Correspondence with
Nancy Randolph, 272
Subsequent Correspondence with
Giles, 297
Correspondence between J. R. and
Judith Randolph about Nancy,
296
Correspondence between Nancy
Randolph and Joseph C. Cabell,
297
J. R.'s Wretched Health, 302
His Insomnia, 313
- His Lack of Virility, 318
Maria Ward, 325
• J. R.'s Fits of Insanity, 331
His Spells of Despondency, 342
Roanoke, 342, 419, 669
N/ J. R's Intemperance, 368
Summary of J. R.*s Infirmities,
379
His Courage, 380
His Views About Duelling, 381
His Veracity and Frankness, 383
His Uprightness, 384
His Pnidential Characteristics, 585
His Respect for Moral Worth, 388
His Regard for Women, 389
His Views About Marriage, 396
His Relations to Particular Women,
400
Not an Unsocial Man, 404
Was an Intensely Social Being,
405
His Social Gifts, 405
His Renfiarkable Memory, 410
Love of England, 412
Aptitude for Quotation, 413
Fond of Singing, Whist and Chess,
414
His Physical Indulgences, 415
Addiction to Racing and Shooting,
Bizarre, 415
J. R.'s Social Connections in South
Side Virginia and North Carolina,
419, 429
His Richmond Friends, 424
His Maryland Friends, 425
His Philadelphia Friends, 426
His Feelings About "Yankees," 426
His Social Life in Washington.
429
Wrote Many Letters, 434
Brilliant Letter Writer, 434
Literary Tastes, 435
J. R. as a Traveller, 436
J. R. and Richard Rush on Julius,
448
The Woman Tempted Me and I
Did Eat, 451^
J. R.'s Heart Was Generous, Com-
passionate and Tender, 451
His Relations to Children and Boys,
456
John Randolph Clay, John Ran-
dolph Bryan, Thos. F. Bryan and
Carter Coupland, 458
J. R.'s Relations to Theodore
Dudley, 471
To Tudor Randolph, 487
To St. George Randolph, 493
J. R.'s Sympathy with Young Men
and Women, 501
J. R.'s Love for His Brother Rich-
ard, 506
And for Judith Randolph, 499,
506
Index
8oi
Death of Judith, 508
Last Words of Tudor and Judith
Randolph, 509
Relations of J. R. to his Sister
Fanny, 509
To His Brother Henry, 512
To His Brother Beverley, 519
To His Niece Elizabeth T. Coalter,
524
Peelings of the Tuckers about J.
R.'s Will. 538
John Randolph's Relations to His
Friends, 542
Henry Rutledge, 544
John Thompson, 546
William Thompson, 547
Joseph Bryan, 564
Joseph H. Nidiolson, 579
Joseph Clay, 591
James M. Gamett, 592
Nathaniel Macon, 592
Richard Stanford, 596
Dr. George Logan, 597
David Parish, 598
John Langdon, 600
Josiah Quinc/, 601
Timothy Pickering, 610
Harmanus Bleecker, 612
Rufus King, 612
Caesar A. Rodney, 617
Daniel Murray, 617
Charles Sterett Ridgeley, 617
Francis Scott Key, 619
Edward Lloyd, 620
Mr. Sargeant, 621
John Taylor of Caroline, 621
Thomas H. Benton, 623
iames Hamilton, 623
lark Alexander, 623
Stephen H. Decatur, 624
John Wickham, 625
Francis W. Gilmer, 626
Nathan Loughborough, 631
Wm. R. Johnson, 633
Benjamin Watkins Leigh, 635
Edmund Irby, 635
Wm. J. Barksdale, 636
John Marshall of Charlotte Co.,
Va., 637
Thomas A. Morton, 637
Edward Booker, 638
Mrs. Tabb, 636, 638
Dr. Thomas Robinson, 638
Littleton Waller Tazewell, 639
Dr. and Mrs. Brockenbrough, 641
Wm. Leigh, 648
. R.'s Namesakes, 650
. R.'s Religious Qiaracter, 650
. R.'s Horses, 672
V
I
. R.'s Dogs, 678
. R.'s Rural Tastes, 685
. R.'s Love of Shooting and Hunt-
ing, 687
His Relations to his Slaves, 689
To His Overseers, 702
Letter from J[. R. to Dr. Dudley
about Certain Things at Roanoke,
707
Conclusion
General Observation Upon Ran-
dolph, 708
Appendix
Letter from J. R. to James Lloyd,
713
Randolph, Judith, V. I, 73, 106,
107 et sea., 114, 129, 132, 133,
134, 361, V. II, 269, 273, 276, 280,
281, 285, 286, 295, 296, 300, 301,
328, 394, 417, 491, 493, 495. 497,
499» 500. 506, 511, 548, 549, 551,
552, 555. 556, 557. 558. 563.
Ra^olph, Kidder, V. I, 364, V. II,
317
Randolph, Lucy, V. II, 288, 299
Randolph, Martha Jefferson, V. I^
1 19, V. II. 299
Randolph, Mary, V. I, 12
Randolph, Mary Isham, V. I, 10
Randolph, Nancy, V. I, 106, 129,
132, 134, 415, V. II, 273, 296,
297, 325, 548
Randolph, Peter, V. II, 174
Randolph, Peyton, V. I, 13, 534,
572, V. II, 429
Randolph, Mrs. Peyton, V. I, 121
Randolph, Peyton, son of Edmimd,
V. II, 324, 326
Randolph, Richard, of Curies, V. I,
12, 16, 17, Id. Note A, 18, Id.
Note A
Randolph, Richard, son of Richard
Randolph of Curies, V. I, 16
Randolph, Richard, brother of John
Randolph of Roanoke, V. I, 20,
33. 35. 43. 46, 48. 49. 55. 58. 64,
73. 74. 75. 81, 82, 83, loi, 102,
103, 104, 106, 107 c< seq. including
Note A, no, 116, 127, 128, 129,
135. 145. V. II, 129, 269, 271,
275. 279. 282, 283, 284, 296
Randolph, Dr. Robert C, V. I,
10
802
Index
Randolph, Ryland, son of Ric)iard
Randolph of CuSrles, V. I, i6, i8,
20, 105, 133. 141, V. II, 288, 289,
504. 556. 557. 597
Randolph, Sarah Nicholas, V. I,
13
Randolph, St. George, V. 1, 74, 128,
330, 331. 337. 338. V. II, 54, 55,
56. 57. 287, 294, 429, 489, 493.
517. 650, 658
Randolph, Theodorick, V. I, 20, 33,
37. 43. 46. 49. 50, 55. 58. 72, 74.
78, 80, 81, 82, 100, III, 361, V. II,
275, 282, 283, 506
Randolph, Thomas, V. I, 81, 91
Randolph, Thomas, the Poet, V. I,
9. 10
Randolph, Thomas, of Tuckahoe, V.
I, 12, 106
Randolph, Thomas Jefferson, V. I,
13
Randolph, Gov. Thomas Mann, Jr.,
V.I, 13, 119, 177,262,270
Randolph, Thos. Mann, Sr., V. I,
I3,V. II, 115. 6a6
Randolph, Tudor, V. I, 31, 36, 300,
343. 415. V. II., 146, 273, 274,
276, 277, 278, 279, 280, 281, 287,
288, 290, 291, 292, 293, 294, 300,
429, 455, 456, 487. 509. 517. 600,
603,610,639
Randolph, Wm., of Turkey Island,
V. I, 9; his descendants, V. I, 12,
et seq.
Randolph, Wm., Jr., of Turkey Is-
land, V. 1, 12, 15, Id. Note A.
Randolph, Wm., V. I, 116
Rea, John, V. II, 202
Read, Dr. Isaac, V. II, 260
Red Hill, V. I, 143, V. II, 104
Reynolds, Mr., V. I, 428
Rice, Benjamin H., V. II, 150
Rice, Dr. Izard, V. II, iii, 302,
372
Rice, Rev. John Holt, V. I, 145,
151, V. II, 104, 117 Note A, 133,
137, 156, 488, 491, 508, 654
Richmond, Va., 300 Note A
Ridgley, Sterett, V. I, 368, 387,
396, 401, 406, 414, V. II, 67, 425,
617, 650
Ritchie, Thomas, V. I, 200, 353,
354, 459, 531. 535. 538, 592. V.
II, 15, 19 Note A, 20, 31 Note A,
86, 263, 450 Note A
Roane, Miss, V. I, 488
Roane, Judge Spencer, V. I, 167
Note A, 451, 488
Roane, Wm. H., V. II, 317
Roanoke, V. I, 18, 45, 128, 142 in-
cluding Note A, 444, 4iS7. 570,
588, V. II, 116, 342, 350, 351, 352,
357 Note B, 412, 415, 419. 429,
475. 669, 670
Robinson, Capt. Harrison, V. II,
55
Robinson, Rev. T., V. II, 178
Robinson, Needier, V. I, 32
Robinson, Dr. Thos., V. IlTi 13, 333,
^ 338, 405, 638
Robinson, Wmslow, V. II, 22
Rochambeau, Count, V. I, 45
Rodgers, Jane, V. I, 12
Rolfe, Jane, V. I, 16
Rolfe, John, V. I, t6
Rolfe, Thomas, V. I, 16
Rose, Robert, V. I, 100
Rush, Ridiard, V. II, 80, 200, 321,
448
Russell, Lord John, V. I, 26
Rutledge, Henry, V. I, 76, 93, 127,
135, 137. 138, V. II, 303. 323,
Saints' Rest, V. I, 62
Sawyer, Lemuel, V. II, 73, 74, 75,
76, 228, 229, 230, 252, 253, 265
Note A, 406, ^06, 542
Seargent, Captam, V. I, 81
Sedgwick, Theo., V. I, 155
Sergeant, Mr., V. II, 621
Sergeant, John, V. II, 46, 253
Seaton, Wm. Winton, V. I, 628
Seaton, Mrs., V. II, 374
Schouler, Jas., V. II, 384 Note A
Scott, John, V. I, 611, 612
Scott, Winfield, V. II, 332 Note A
Sheffey, Daniel, V. II, 319
Shephard, Abe, V. I, 296
Sherman, Roger, V. II, 612 Note
A
Skipwith, Geo., V. I, 570
Skipwith, Mr., V. I, 535
Skipwith, Sir Grey, V. II, 154, 530,
650
Skipwith, Sir Peyton, Baronet, V. I,
68, V. II, 122, 154
Slaughter, Rev. Philip, V. I, 10
Sloan, Jas., V. I, 240, 246, 255, 256,
257 Note A, 291, 308, 588
Smflie, John, V. I, 155, 245, 247,
255, 256, 289, 291, 306, 360, V.
II, 587
Smith, Israel, V. I, 303
Smith, John, V. I, 257, 303
Smith, Captain John, V. I, 16,
66
Smith, J. Augustin, V. II, 302
Index
803
Smith, John Blair, V. 11, 137
Smith, John Cotton, V. I, 225
Smith, Robert, V. I, 260, 261, V.
II. 581
Smith, Samuel, V. I, 155, 175, 260,
350, 560, V. II, 542, 581 Note A
Smith, Samuel Stanhope, V. II,
137
Smith, Wm., V. II, 27
Smyth, Gen., V. I, 458, 536
Snyder, V. I, 409
Southey, Robert, V. II, 441
Spalding, Thos., V. II, 572, 575,
650
Sparks, Tared, V. II, 61, 300, 491
Sparks, W. H.. V. I, 568, V. II, 79,
201
Speece, Dr. Conrad, V. II, 137,
206, 655
Spencer, Col. Gideon, V. I, 597
Stanard, Robert, V. I, 611, 612, V.
11,94
Stanberry, Wm., V. I, 649
Stanford, Richard, V. I, 155, 454,
560, V. II, 425, 596
Stephen, Jas., V. I, 284, 285
Stevenson, Adlai E., V. II, 201
Stith, Anne, V. I, 22
Stith, Wm., V. I, 12, 14
Stoddart, V. I, 161
Strong, Gov. Caleb, V. I, 410
Stuart, Gilbert, V. II, 66, 95
Suffield, Lord, V. I, 531
Summers, Lewis, V. I, 611
Sumter, Thos., V. I, 155, 166, 560
Swartwout, Sam'l, V- 1, 305
Syphax, V. I, 17, 43, 73, V. II, 323,
698
Tabb, Mrs., V. II, 125, 404, 423,
458,497,636,638
Tallmadge, Benj., V. I, 250, 255
Tallmadge, James, V. I, 447
Tatnall, Col., V. I, 515, V. II,
624
Taylor, Creed, V. I, 105, 120, 121,
I33» 140* 141 including Note A,
142, 148, 153, 286, 507, V. II,
637
Taylor, Mrs. Creed, V. I, 120, 121,
123, V. II, 548
Taylor, John, of Caroline, V. I, 98,
216, 293, 332, 340, 345. 346, 347.
349, 560, 570, V. II, 5, 235, 454,
607, 621, 623 Note A
Taylor, Robert Barraud, V. I, 124
including Note A, 296, 61 1 Note
A, 612, V. II, 93
Tazewell, Littleton Waller, V. I,
54, 57, 59, 60, 94, 124 including
Note A, 293, 296, 297, 305. 332.
349, 461, 560, 587, 599, 605, 610,
612, 613, V. II, 66, 117, 316, 332,
425, 431, 639, 640 Note A
Thomas, David, V. I, 255 including
Note A, 293
Thomas, Dr., V. I, 560
Thompson, John, V. I, 105, 127,
130 mdudmg Note A, V. 11, 546,
549
Thompson, Lucas P., V. I, 612
Thompson, Wm., V. II, 507, 546
Ticknor, George, V. I, 574, V. II,
599
Tompkins and Murray, V. I, 444,
V. II, 358, 663
Truxton, Capt. Thos., V. I, 166
Tuboeuf , V. I, 467
Tucker, Aunt, V. I, 70
Tucker, Beverley, V. 1, 15, 45 Note
A, 153 Note A, 354 Note A,
396
Tucker, Charlotte Maria, V. I,
Tudcer, David Hunter, V. I, 15
Tucker, Fanny, sister of John Ran-
dolph of Roanoke, V. I, 33, 43,
47, 48. 70, 132, V. II. 305, 392,
509, 522, 529, 542, 543
Tucker, George, V. I, 228
Tucker, Henry, of Bermuda, V. I,
65
Tucker, Henry St. George, of Ber-
muda, V. I, 65
Tucker, Henry St. George, V. I, 14,
33, 34, 43, 47, 102, 132, 133, 135,
396, 439, 440. 455, 505, V. II, 52,
53, 54, 55. 56, 268, 269, 283. 332.
361, 429, AH, 445, 498, 5", 512,
514 Note A, 538,650
Tucker, Henry St. George, son of
John Randolph Tucker, V. I, 15
Tucker, John Randolph, V. I., 15,
43, 66, 440, V. II, 54
Tucker, Nathaniel, V. I, 65
Tucker, Nathaniel Beverley, V. I,
14, 33, 133. V. II, 29, 56, 196,
269 Note A, 469, 5", 519, 538,
^ 539, 540, 677
Tucker, old Mrs., V. I, 64, 65
Tucker, Polly, V. II, 511,519,520
Note A, 522
Tucker, St. George, Author of
Hansford, V. I, 15
Tucker, St. George, Step-Father of
John Randolph of Roanoke, V. I,
29, 34, 36, 42, 44, 45, 46, 49, 50,
51, 55, 65, 66, 67, 69, 74, 79, 80,
81, 82, 89, 97, 99, 102, 103, 105,
8o4
Index
Tndoer, St. Geoise — CmUimu^
115, 116, 120. 128, 130, 132, 133,
130, 153, 168, 267, 272, V. 11,
122, 267, 269, 277, 298, 304, 513,
« 523. 538. 539. 542. 6ji
Tucker, Thos. Tudor, V. I, 65, 81,
99.560
Tucker, Tudor, V. II, 54
Tyler, Comfort, V. I, 303
Tyler, John, V. 1, 535. 540. 605, 635,
V. II, 317
Upshur, Abel P., V. 1, 608, 610, 612,
632
Van Buren, Martin, V. I, 87, 510,
6^$ Note A, 646 Note A, 654, 655
Note A, V. II, 13, 14 Note A, 28
Note A, 203 Note A
Vance, Jos., V. I, 543
Van Zandt, Nicholas B., V. I,
308
Vamum, Joseph B., V. 1, 155,255,
306, V. II, 229 Note A
Vaughan, Clement, V. II, i;
S A
,397
Venable, Richard J., V. II, 26
. 11, 13?
Venable, Abraham B., V. I, 142,
V. II, 397
Venable, Richard N., V. II, Note
A
Venable, Samuel, V. II, 26
Venable, tiol. Samuel, Abrahun,
Richard and Nathaniel, V. II,
142. 154
Venables, the, of Prince Edward
Co.. V. II, 123
Von Hoist, V. II, 200
Ward, Benjamin, V. I, 44
Ward, Maria, V. I, 44, V. II, 324,
^325. 563. 588
Warminster, V. I, 68
Washington, George, V. I, 45, 74,
94. 139. 143. 166, 359, 425. 478,
498, 547. 549 „ ,
Watkins, Henry A.. V. II, 5, 9, 26,
27, 45, 170
Watkins, Joel, V. I, 143 Note A, V.
11,388
Watkisis, Wm. M., V. II, 5 Note B,
26, 27, 253 Nate A, 260 Note
A, 331 Note A, 398, 456
Webster, Daniel, V. I, 211, 315,
369, 435.,442. 472. 476. 487. 504.
527, V. II, 31 Note A, 64, 88,
217
Webster, Mrs. Daniel, V. I, 443
Webster, Ezekiel, V. I, 211
Webster, Fletcher, V. I, 443
Webster, Noah, Jr., V. II, 172, 226
Note A
West, Captain, V. II, 37, 166, 358
West, Dr. Francis, V. II, 37, 43
Westover, V. I, 21
Whittier, John, V. II, 63, 244,
7"
Wickham, John, V. I, 131, 469, 611,
612, 613, V. II, 5, 54, 214, 424.
466, 594, 625
WUde, iGchard H., V. I, 496
Wilkinson, Gen. Jas., V. I, 257, 300,
301, 302, 313. 317 Note A, 350,
359. 365. 372_,.40?
Willia
88
iamsburg, V. I, 57, 58, 72, 76,
Williams, David R., V. I, 225, 350,
371. 397. V. II, 590
Williams, Mr., V. I, 531, 532,
"V^^lson, Daniel A., V. I, 536
WUson, Mrs., V. I, 641
Wintopoke, V. I, 44
Wirt, William, V. I, 86, 504, 325
Note A, 354, 454 Note A, V. II,
137. 138. 625
Wise, Henry A., V. I, 32, 610
Witherspoon, Dr., V. I, 72, 73, 78,
85
Wolcott, Oliver, V. I, 161. 556.
557
Wood, J., V. II, 67, 70, 61 1
Woodbury, Levi, V. I, 87
Wright, V. I. 544
Wright, Robert, V. II, 202
Wye, V. II, 426
Wyllie, Hugh, V. I, 594
Wythe, George, Chancellor, V. 1, 67,
72, 105
Ji Selection from the
Catalogue of
C P. PUTNAM*S SONS
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U
Benjamin Franklin
Self-Revealed
A Biographical and Critical Study Based
Mainly on His Own Writings
By
William Cabell Bruce
Two Volumes
Charactei ^.ed by research and accuracy, critical
insight and literary finish, this work should popularize
a large amount of biographical material that now
exists in forms wholly inaccessible to the general
reader, e id should supersede, to a greater or less
extent, all existing books with regard to Franklin.
Throur^hout the narrative run citations from Franklin's
own writings, thus making Franklin himself reveal
his own many-sided personality in such a manner as
no independent biographer could hope to do.
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